


Reassemble and Repair

by secretkeeper



Series: Disassemble and Reassemble [2]
Category: Avengers (Comics), Marvel 616, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Depression, F/M, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, M/M, Marriage of Convenience, Mental Breakdown, Mental Health Issues, Past Rape/Non-con, Period-Typical Homophobia, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempt
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-18
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2019-10-30 23:50:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 16
Words: 105,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17838389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/secretkeeper/pseuds/secretkeeper
Summary: Crystal Amaqualin has always gone and done what is required of her in life, as long as it means the best for her people. Marriage to Ronan the Accuser just falls under that same umbrella.But when the true cost of her marriage becomes clear, Crystal realizes she must choose between the will of her people and her own desires - and she must have the strength to see her decision through.Meanwhile, Wanda Maximoff goes to start a new stage in her life and help a friend while she does so - but love and friendship cannot heal all wounds.





	1. Love and Marriage

**Author's Note:**

> And the sequel begins. As you can tell by the tags, this story is a bit darker than Disassembly was, but I would say it isn't quite as dark as Streets. Nothing is going to be too graphic, but I will give heads-up for any chapters that might be more disturbing than others.

    For the last twenty minutes or so, Crystal Amaqualin had been pacing around the edge of her room, trying to calm the restlessness that was spreading through her soul.

    The reason for her feelings wasn't a mystery to anyone who might have known about the changes that were happening in her life. "You're getting married again. Of course you're feeling some nerves. Think about how it was the first time," was the refrain that Crystal had echoing in her mind.

    She couldn't help but smile at the memory of when Pietro and her had spoken their vows. Sure, it hadn't been an entirely stress-free occasion, but her overwhelming feeling going into that day had been one of giddy excitement. There had been the brief moment when she had spoken with Johnny and had questioned whether or not she was making the right choice, but that had been a fleeting thought. When the words had been spoken that formally joined her and Pietro as husband and wife Crystal had all doubts thrown from her mind.

    Thinking about Pietro only served to remind her about how much things had gone badly. Crystal shook her head, not needing any other morose thoughts to go running through her brain at this time. "Too much living there already," she whispered to herself.

    Now she went back to the question she had been pondering before: why was this time making her so much more nervous? The first answer that came to mind was the whole unexpected nature of the arrangement. Crystal had no idea what she was getting into when Medusa had asked her if she wanted to come on a diplomatic mission. It was out of the ordinary for her to take part in anything like that, but she did look forward to spending a little time alone with her sister. She wished in part that she had thought to ask where they would actually end up going. Maybe then...

    The meeting in and of itself hadn't been too unusual up until that one fateful sentence. Crystal had just stood around listening to Medusa talk to Ronan about the value that an alliance between the Kree and the Inhumans would hold for both parties. He had sounded almost bored as he asked "And what kind of benefits could I see from such a deal? We would be giving you the ability to access our military might, and in turn we would..."

    Medusa's smile had made her next words come as a complete shock to Crystal. "As you can see, I have brought along with me my sister Crystal today. In exchange for your acceptance of this of an alliance between our peoples, I also offer you her hand in marriage."

    Her jaw had hit the floor. _What?! Marriage?_ Honestly, the idea of getting married again hadn't ever really crossed her mind. She had made too many mistakes the first time for her to take a chance and try again. And there was also the issue of Luna to consider. There had been a few men among her people who had said they might be interested in seeing her if it wasn't for the presence of her daughter. Crystal always told herself that the reason that was the case was due to the necessity of Pietro remaining a part of her life rather than anything having to do with Luna personally. Pietro was often hard to get along with, although she had a good deal of experience with his more caring side. And of course no one could tell a father that he needed to stay away from his child, at least not if they were a decent person. So Crystal had resigned herself to remaining single.

    A part of her thought that Ronan's reaction towards the proposal was going to be laughter. After all, they knew nothing about each other. Why would you want to marry someone who you didn't know? But he looked over Crystal intently before speaking, and she could feel a shudder run down her spine as he said "Tell me more about this proposal."

    She'd stood by in silence as two people started to talk about her future. What really could she say? Any cries of protest would mean an end to any agreement with the Kree, and Crystal knew that she wouldn't be able to live with the knowledge she was the cause of it all falling to pieces. It was only when she had a spare moment with her sister that she was able to voice any of her thoughts on the matter. "Was that the reason you wished for me to accompany you here? To offer my hand to whoever you chose?" She tried to keep her voice as neutral as it was possible for it to be. More tension was not going to make things any better.

    Medusa did look a bit embarrassed as she answered "In part, yes. I felt that if there was to be such an important decision made concerning you then you needed to be there. But I did look forward to the chance to spend some more time with you. With all the duties we have, it's rare for us to just sit down and talk for a while. I also was uncertain if the idea would even need to be brought up. There was a chance that Ronan would be receptive enough to the proposal of an alliance between our people that there would be no need to further sweeten the deal."

    It all sounded so logical when Crystal listened to the words. But there was one question that she needed to have answered before she could move on to anything else. "But why was my hand in marriage even a part of the negotiations? Wasn't there something else that could have been done?" She did not ask  _Why would you make such an important decision about my life without bothering to see how I felt about it?_ If Medusa had decided that it was important to offer her hand in marriage, then it had to be the right decision. Crystal's own feelings meant little when they were compared to the needs of the Inhumans as a whole.

    "Well, you can't go around being single for the rest of your life, Crystal. Things may not have worked out the first time that you were married, but you're still young. There's still plenty of time for you to start over. Now you know a lot more and understand how things should be. If there was any interest being displayed in you by someone of our people then I wouldn't bother trying to see what else might be out there. If Ronan had declined, then I would have started talking to you about people we know who are available for a potential match. It's to everyone's benefit that you move on, and meet someone who is genuinely suited for you. It will be good for Luna as well. She needs to have a father figure in her life, someone who will be there for her."

    She didn't bother to say that for all of Pietro's flaws, he was a loving father, or that Luna wasn't going to want someone taking his place. Her path was now set, and she had to now plan on what she was going to tell her daughter.

    Her daughter's reaction upon hearing her aunt say that her mother was now engaged was to say "I didn't know you liked anybody."

    "It's not so much that I like someone. It's more that by getting married now I can do something that will be of great help to our people."

    Luna asked "Do you like him?"

    It was so direct that Crystal couldn't think of what to say for a moment. "I don't think we know each other well enough to say that we like each other or not."

    "That's dumb. When I get married I'm going to make sure I like whoever I get married to before I do it."

    She had to smile at that. "I know you will."

    Still curious, Luna now asked "Who is he?"

    "Ronan the Accuser." She did not look at her daughter as she spoke.

    Whether it was the tone in her voice or the name she had given, Luna became quiet for a few moments. "Should I tell Dad?"

    How to break the news to Pietro wasn't an issue Crystal had thought about before then. "It would be better if I were the one who told him."

    She had no idea how her ex was going to take the news. She almost expected that he would become angry at hearing she was moving on with her life, but the first thing Pietro asked her was "Do you love him?"

    "I love my people," was what Crystal answered.

    "I see." His voice did not indicated that he was approving.

    "This is something that needs to be done." She wasn't sure why she wanted so badly to make him understand the situation. Her best guess was that she was afraid he would do something with Luna if he truly was so disapproving of her marriage.

    "Then I hope it makes you happy, Crystal." Pietro didn't sound like he was angry at what was going to come, and she'd felt a sense of hope for a little while.

    The first meeting between her and Ronan after the engagement was made official had seemed to go fairly well. At first her nerves had been so great she'd almost pleaded with Medusa to stay by her side as they spoke. But that had felt too childish, and she told herself  _You need to learn to be with him sooner or later. Get a grip on yourself._ And so they had spoken about what was going to come. Well, mostly it had been Ronan who spoke and Crystal who listened. She knew that in spite of what she had told Pietro she wasn't fully at ease with getting married again, and given too many chances to speak the odds of the wrong thing coming out grew.

    Luna actually said more than her mother did. Early in the meeting she poked her head in and said "You're going to get married to my mom?"

    "This is a private conversation between us. Please leave right now." The look on Ronan's face was far more pointed than the tone of his words. Crystal almost went to get up and usher Luna out the door, but the expression on her fiance's face kept her in her seat. She half expected him to jump up and physically show her daughter the door, but Ronan just continued to stare at Luna until she spoke again.

    "I just wanted to talk to you. If you're going to be part of my family, then we have to know each other at some point." Only silence greeted her, and after being stared down for too long Luna slipped out slowly. She looked at her mother with concern, and it made the butterflies in Crystal's stomach come back in full force.

    "Does she still see her father?" The question felt somewhat out of the blue.

    "Yes," was all she could say. It felt like the wrong answer, but lying didn't suit her any better.

    "How often?"

    "Whenever we can make arrangements." Crystal could feel the level of insinuation that was unspoken although bringing it up didn't appear to be a good option right now.

    Ronan didn't answer, instead looking her over from head to toe. She'd hoped at the time that it meant the issue was resolved.

    Soon after that had come the whole mess with the Avengers, and how that horrible man had tried to make everyone think Wanda had lost her mind. When the news of the trouble had come, she'd run to help out in the aftermath of the destruction. She'd barely had time to reconnect with everyone before she received a summons from home. Upon her return, her sister had spoken to her about her efforts. "Crystal, you have to think about how your actions might look to others."

    "I just went to go and help out my friends when they needed me. I wouldn't think that would look wrong to anyone."

    "In the past, yes. But now you're engaged. Ronan has spoken to me about how he feels regarding your relationship with Pietro. He doesn't like how much time you spend together, and it would be best if you kept things to a minimum for now."

    Blinking in surprise, Crystal answered "But we don't spend very much time together, save for when Luna is coming or going between us. Pietro's her father. I can't avoid seeing him on occasion. And there's nothing that exists between us anymore. So there's no threat to any relationship Ronan and I will have."

    Medusa nodded. "I understand. But Ronan was very upset when he spoke with me about the issue. There were even threats made to call off the engagement. And you understand that there's no way we can proceed with our alliance if you don't follow through with the agreement. So for the time being, it's better if you don't go and meet up with him too much. We can find someone else to take Luna to see him whenever she goes back to Earth. Is that alright with you?"

    "It's fine." And it was. Crystal still thought it was ridiculous to go to such lengths to keep her from running into her ex, but she also didn't want to cause any trouble for her people. It wasn't like they were telling her to keep Luna away from Pietro. That would have been a real problem.

    Later that same day, Luna had spoken her own thoughts on the marriage. "Are you really going to marry Ronan?"

    "Yes. I am."

    She paused. "I don't like him. I wish he wouldn't come back."

    With how their first meeting had gone, it didn't shock Crystal to hear that. "It can take time to get used to somebody new. I bet that as you get to know each other things will get better." The words felt hollow as she spoke them, and she knew that there was likely going to be some kind of trouble going forward.

    But she never would have guessed what ended up taking place. It had come about during Ronan's second visit, and when Luna had peeked in on the two of them for a moment he had turned to her and said "Why isn't she with her father now?"

    "There's been some trouble with the Avengers, and besides they were together only..." Crystal wasn't able to finish her sentence before he crossed over to where she was seated.

    "That child is only going to end up causing trouble. She has a parent who is perfectly capable of taking care of her. I will not waste my time being saddled with another man's spawn, especially not one who's father is so clearly unsuitable for anyone!"

    "You can't be serious! I'm not just going to go and dump Luna on Pietro for no reason! I will not go and abandon my child just because you have a problem with the person I used to call my husband!" Her voice grew louder and louder, and Crystal was determined to not give an inch to this man. How dare he try and take her child from her!

    Their voices had apparently been loud enough that someone had gone and gotten Medusa, who interrupted the dispute by saying "What is going on here?"

    Both Ronan and Crystal tried to speak at the same time, and then Medusa raised her hand in a gesture for silence. Once they had both followed through, she pointed at Ronan. His answer was "Your sister is not willing to put forward the effort required to proceed with this union." He shot daggers in Crystal's direction as he spoke.

    "I am putting in effort, but I won't go so far as to sacrifice my daughter to do so!" She knew her voice was being raised, but couldn't be bothered to care.

    Medusa looked over the two of them, and replied "Ronan, why don't you come with me so we can speak privately. Please stay here for now, Crystal."

    She didn't want to go with them in any event. It was comforting to think that her sister was going to set him straight about how important Luna was to her. "Who does he think he is, trying to control my child like that?" she wondered.

    "Crystal?" Her sister interrupted her thoughts just then. "We need to talk."

    "Of course," she answered.

    Medusa sighed. "I'm afraid that you are going to have to send Luna to stay with her father for a period of time. Ronan is adamant that he will not go forward with anything until the situation is resolved. I tried to get him to compromise, but he said that having to live with the daughter of a man who hates him is not what he signed on for. I was able to get him to reconsider once the wedding is over, and hopefully we can work at fitting Luna into the new situation as soon as possible then."

    There once again wasn't anything that could be said. Crystal knew that she had to go forward with the marriage, and if doing so meant that she had to send her child away then it was the only option. "When does he want this to take place?"

    "As soon as possible. I think it would be best to speak with Pietro first, and see what his schedule permits." Medusa didn't seem to be too bothered by the responsibility she was foisting on him despite knowing about what had happened at the mansion.

     "I will." But Crystal had dragged her feet. She couldn't bring herself to go and send her child off like that, not when she was already having to deal with so many changes to her life. It was almost a week later when Ronan returned, and he was clearly not happy to see his wishes were not being carried out.

     He had gone right up to her face and asked "Why have you not done as I have asked you to?"

     Shivers ran up her spine as she tried to offer a defense. "There's been a lot going on..."

    "Enough." He reached out and grabbed her arm. "You will make certain the child is gone by tomorrow, or there will be no alliance. And I will be then certain to tell all of your enemies how vulnerable your people are currently." He tightened his grip and continued. "I will be remaining to make sure you obey this time."

    And so Crystal called Pietro and made the request that broke her heart. His words that he was sorry she had to do this nearly brought her to tears, but she kept a hold of her emotions until she was speaking to Luna. With a deep breath, she said "Luna, we need to talk about you and Ronan."

    "I know, he doesn't like me. So that means you're not going to marry him, right?"

    Her words were rapid enough that Crystal could guess she knew what was coming. "Because of that your aunt and I have decided it would be best if..."

    "Because there's no way you would say what somebody stupid like that wants is going to make you do something. You're my mom and you love me more than anything, right?" Her voice was becoming more high-pitched as she finished her sentence.

    "You know how important this is to our people, Luna, and I still love you more than anything in the world. Your father has said that he can take care of you for as long as he needs to, and I'm going to tell Ronan after we've gotten married that it will be okay if we all stay together. Everything is going to be fine."

    Luna yelled "It  _won't_ be! And they aren't my people! That's what they tell me, that I'm not really one of the Inhumans because of my dad! If you really loved me you wouldn't make me go!" And she ran out of the room.

    That was the breaking point. Crystal broke down and began to sob, knowing that she had harmed her child in a way that no parent ever should. She was tempted to go and plead with Ronan to allow her to keep her child, that she would do anything to stop this. But when she looked up she could see him standing in the doorway with a look of approval on his face.

    "Maybe I should try and speak to her again," she said as she dragged herself back to the present. Her efforts at speaking to Luna since then had all ended in failure. Pietro had done his best to make her at least act civilly when Crystal tried to reach out to her. He still wasn't able to get her on the phone, but Crystal preferred silence to hateful words. Luna had called her "the worst mother in the world" when she was leaving with her father. That had hurt more than she could have possibly imagined. She wondered about what would happen if Medusa was successful in making Ronan accept Luna's presence in her life - would her daughter even want anything to do with her anymore?

    It was funny how she was speaking with Pietro more now than she had prior to Luna being sent to him. She was careful not to let anyone else know that they had been speaking, afraid that her only connection to the world beyond her own would be cut off. But there really wasn't anyone else on the Avengers that she felt close enough to speak with about the team. When Jan had spoken with her about coming to help them out Crystal had felt more excited than she had for a long time. It was a reminder of how she was still part of the team even though it had been so long since she had been an active member. She wished she had been able to follow through.

    Thinking about that led her to remember the fury she had seen on Ronan's face when he had overheard their conversation. If only Jan had told her that Pietro wasn't going to be there...

    (A tiny part of her knew that even if her ex-husband hadn't been part of the picture she still wouldn't have gotten to leave, but if Crystal admitted that to herself that would raise more questions that she couldn't answer.)

    At least she knew that the whole mess with Wanda had been taken care of. It had felt unreal to hear that she was believed to have caused all of this destruction to her friends, but the whole affair had served to have a large silver lining. If Wanda hadn't been framed by the Sentry, then she might never have gone to help Anna Altman, and from there been reunited with her long-lost sons. It was strange to think that while her own family was coming apart, her sister-in-law's family was being put back together. At least one of them could be happy.

_Stop this,_ she told herself.  _Everything is going to be fine._ She would get married, and then she would convince Ronan to let Luna back into her life, and everything would work out as planned.

    And if Crystal repeated those words to herself enough times, she might almost start to believe them.

 

* * *

 

    The last place on Earth most people are going to say they feel happiest in would be their mother-in-law's couch. Staying with your in-law's for a while may not be a terrible experience, but the couch aspect means that you weren't planning on showing up and had to make do with what you can.

    For Wanda Maximoff and Vision, that was undoubtedly the case, but neither one could imagine being happier than they were now. So much had gone on to lead them here, and Wanda could live with a backache for a while when it came along with so many other wonderful things.

    It was true that one's life could change on a dime. She had gone through a roller-coaster of emotions over the last month, starting with when she had formally rekindled her relationship with Vision. Everything had been going so smoothly, and then the attack at the mansion happened. Wanda still found it hard to believe that she had been so easily condemned, even now that she knew more of the extent of the powers of the man who had chosen to frame her. It left a sour taste in her mouth whenever she thought about the Avengers. It had only been chance that she had been able to get away, and then her life began to take a sharp upward turn. She had been pointed in the direction of Bonita Juarez, and from there to the door of one Anna Altman. Anna had not only been able to help her and Bonita start to unravel the mystery of what had really happened, she had also given the greatest gift of all to Wanda: that of her family.

    Never in a million years would Wanda have imagined she would be reunited with her children. The loss of Billy and Tommy had been a painful hole in her heart that she knew would never fully heal. Over the years the pain had eased, but the moment that she saw Tommy come down the stairs at Anna's and call her Mommy everything had flared back to life. Yet the word had been the truth. The twins had survived the attack by Master Pandemonium with some help from the spirit of her teacher, and had been living with Anna ever since that day. She still couldn't believe that she had gone from losing all she had in life to gaining it all back and more.

    The rediscovery of Tommy and Billy had been even more healing for Vision than it had been for herself. He had felt the pain over their loss in a much less apparent way, having spent a good deal of the time without any real emotions. It had only been one time that Wanda could recall him publicly acknowledging his grief, saying that he had not had the ability to mourn the loss of his sons as it had happened. That had been one of the reasons he hadn't tried any harder to allow himself to have his feelings restored - he knew what pain was awaiting him when he did so. She had never imagined that she would ever see Vision crying as much as he did the first time in so many years he held his boys. Even without many outward expressions of grief, that level of feeling told her all she needed to know.

    For the last week, the whole family had been staying in a hotel that was paid for by Tony Stark. He had offered up an all-expenses paid stay in lieu of them spending time with the rest of the Avengers. She wished that she could think of some way to thank Tony for that. He seemed to have a knack for knowing what it was Wanda needed, as opposed to Steve Rodgers, who wanted to offer apologies that she knew she could not accept. Maybe some day when there wasn't so much to do...

    The week had given both Vision and Wanda the chance to connect with their sons once more. Tommy for his part had been able to go and see both his parents while he slept, although Wanda had never seen him then. Vision had only seen him once, and he had convinced himself it had just been some manner of dream. (It wouldn't have made a big difference even if he'd known that it was real, because Tommy hadn't been able to say anything that would have led them to Anna's.) Nothing could take the place of the years they had lost, but the time the family had spent together had done something to restore the closeness they should have had.

    Arriving at Martha Williams' home had brought a small surprise for Wanda. Billy and Tommy had suddenly become much shyer than she had ever seen them, not wanting to go inside. She'd asked "What's wrong? There's nothing to be afraid of here. Grandma Martha is going to love you visiting her, I know it."

    Billy had been the one to speak first. "But what if we don't know what to say to her? Grandma only knew us when we were babies. Tommy and I are big now."

    "It might be nice to start off talking about Aunt Anna and Teddy. I know that Mother is going to want to meet them someday, and you can help out by telling her all the things she might want to know." Vision responded to Billy's worries by getting down on one knee and looking him directly in the eye. "I only met Mother when I was big, so that's just a little something we have in common."

    Both boys looked surprised at that. Tommy asked "How could you not know your mommy before? What about when you were born?"

    Wanda almost laughed at the question, but it didn't take her very long to realize just how serious Tommy was. It dawned on her that neither of them really thought of Vision as being any different than any other person they knew. He was their Daddy, nothing more. Anna hadn't been likely to tell them any details about the Avengers' personal lives, and due to her situation the twins hadn't met all that many people outside of the Altman home. They wouldn't have heard the word robot in regards to their father (she always hated that word for Vision, as it made him seem like he was less of a man than anyone else) and even in the event they had heard something they may have still been too young to understand what it meant. Some day the whole story would have to be told, but not now.

    "Things were a bit different for me than for most people. It's a little hard to explain, but I promise I'll tell you later on. But if you still feel like you don't know what to say to your grandmother, just stay with me and Mommy. We can do all the talking if we have to."

    The words did their part in reassuring Billy and Tommy, and Wanda went forward to ring the doorbell.

    Martha's first reaction on seeing them standing at her door was to start crying. "I still can't believe it," she said as she looked over her grandchildren. "I almost thought after Simon came to see me that I would never see any one of you again."

    Vision reached out to wrap her in his arms. "Please don't cry, Mother. We're all here now, and I hope that we can stay for a little longer."

    "Stay as long as you need to. I'm sorry to say that I only have one room available right now, but the couch folds out so at least one bunch of you can spend the night there. I can put another room together a little later on."

    Tommy peeked out from where he was hiding behind his father. "I can smell chicken," he said in a quiet voice.

    "That's because I made a special dinner when I knew I was going to have family coming over. I don't always do something that takes a lot of work, but it's nice to do something special for people you love."

    That was enough to break the ice, and both Tommy and his brother were soon talking to Martha like they had just visited the day before. Wanda was also happy to be spending an extended period of time with her mother-in-law as it had been far too long for her as well. Oddly enough, during the time she had been seeing Simon they had only gone to Martha's once. She'd been kind and pleasant during the visit, but there was something else that lingered behind her eyes, something that told Wanda she wasn't entirely happy with how things had worked out. She would never know for certain, because no matter how she'd felt Martha had been caught between two of her children and would not make any choice between them.

    After the meal was done and the boys put to bed, it was now time for the adults to talk. Vision said "I know that you are wondering about what happened."

    She nodded. "Oh, yes. I knew that there was no way Wanda lost her mind over the twins, but I didn't know why anyone would want to frame her for something like that. Tell me as much as you can."

    It was mainly Wanda who told the story, since Vision had spent too much of the time in pieces. She spoke of her finding refuge with Bonita, the message that brought them to Anna, and the one word Tommy had said that changed everything. Talking of Robert Reynolds, and the harm he had caused not just to her family but to all of the Avengers, was still not easy. The man may have been beyond causing any more trouble but he had still wrecked some of the most important relationships she had. "And then whatever they said struck a chord in him, and he removed his own powers. I don't know exactly where they came from, but taking them away caused his mind to shatter. When I spoke to Tony last, he said there hadn't been any changes. I doubt there ever will be. Playing with forces like that always comes with a cost."

    Martha pondered all she had heard for a few minutes. "And he was working against you for so long... At least he can't hurt anyone anymore." Looking at her closely, she asked "What are you going to do now?"

    "I would like to return to our old home. Wanda says she kept up the costs over the years, so all we would need to do is clean up and air the place out. Tomorrow I will be going to Anna's to get the remainder of Billy and Tommy's things. Teddy and her just went back yesterday, and I would like to talk with her now that she's home."

    Vision's plans were clear, but Wanda still didn't know what she was going to do next. It all depended on the outcome of a call she was going to make in the morning. She had been told that Stephen Strange would be happy to accept her as a student, but what about the words he had spoken condemning her on that terrible day? Would he feel too guilty to take her on, or would the past serve as a barrier between them?

    All of those thoughts were the reason she was still lying awake on the couch hours after she had turned in. An arm wrapped around her shoulders. "Wanda, is something bothering you?"

    "Yes. I'm going to be speaking with Stephen tomorrow, but I have no idea how things are going to turn out. Even if he does want to teach me, what's happened could make working together impossible. And then there's what I saw that night..." It still stung to remember how much pain Stephen had seemed to be in. She tried to tell herself that it could have just been a one-time thing, but she knew she didn't believe that.

    Vision began to rub circles on her back. "Even if he doesn't want you as a pupil, it might be worthwhile to just be a friend. If Stephen is feeling overwhelmed, then just having another person around besides Wong might make all the difference. And you won't know how things will turn out until you speak with each other."

    "I understand. But the nerves are still there. I've just started to put all the pieces of my life together. I don't want to spend my time forcing something in place that doesn't really work out for me. For so long I've been able to look at myself as being an Avenger even when I had nothing else. Now I have to find a new path. That's pretty overwhelming."

    He kissed her and said "Wherever your new path takes you, remember I will be there with you."

    The support boosted her resolve, and Wanda said "Thank you." She began to settle down, think about how tomorrow she would make that call and see how things would go.

 


	2. Voices Carry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Re connections lead to very different results.

    Pietro Maximoff knew even before he picked up his phone who was going to be calling. "Hello, Crystal."

    He wasn't going to lie to himself and say that hearing from her was a bad thing. Even with how things had gone between them, he still did not wish her ill. The closest he had come to that had been in the period following the revelation of her affair, but Pietro also could say that there wasn't _anyone_ in the world he hadn't been wishing ill at that time. There was a small part of him that had been disappointed when he'd learned that Crystal was marrying again, but that was a part that existed entirely on wishful thinking. He had been sincere when he said that he hoped marrying Ronan made her happy.

    But the moment she had called him saying that she needed to send Luna to him right away had crushed that hope. Pietro wanted to go and ask the man who he thought he was, trying to make the woman he was going to wed to make such an impossible choice. Crystal wasn't going to refuse to do so under the threat of losing the alliance that the Inhumans, and he knew that Ronan also knew that very well. Perhaps it wasn't just having to deal with a child that wasn't his own or the presence of Pietro himself that caused Ronan to make his request. It could have been an effort to exert a level of control in Crystal's life that he couldn't otherwise have. But that thought came from the selfish part of him that hoped the marriage wouldn't go forward. He shook his head and listened to what she had to say.

    "Hello, Pietro. How have you been?" Each time Crystal called her voice was always so quiet. He didn't like to think about why that was so.

    "I've been busy helping with the mansion. I have to say this was one of Tony's better ideas. I'm starting to get to know people I never knew before, like Elvin or Bonita. Wanda and Bonita have become really close since this whole mess came about. I'm glad she has a new friend to spend time with."

    "I was wondering about how Wanda's doing now. I don't think that she's going to want to be doing anything with the team for a while. But I just can't see her hanging around the house all day."

    Talking about his sister's plans at least put off the more uncomfortable conversation they were going to have. "Just before Wanda and Vision left the hotel they were staying at, Luna and I went to have dinner with them. She said that she was going to look into studying magic with Stephen Strange, but that she didn't know if it would work out." Pietro had first thought that Wanda just thought that Stephen was going to feel uneasy with her due to how he had been the one who first pointed a finger in her direction, but he knew his twin better than almost anyone in the world. Something like that wouldn't have caused the clear worry on her face, but he opted to not pursue the issue further.

    "I hope that she can go and do that. I remember talking with her about that once when I was on the team." Crystal always sounded so happy when she talked about the time she had been an Avenger. In terms of the length of time she had spent there, it wasn't much. But those days had been some of ones she had been happiest with her life and family. There had been problems then, as always, but being part of a greater good had made Crystal shine in a way Pietro had only seen before when she had given birth to Luna.

    "I'll let you know as soon as I hear more," he promised. It was time to get down to the unfortunate business at hand. "I'm guessing you want to see if I can get Luna to talk to you."

    "I know that it's not likely to work out, but I just have to try. I know I've hurt her so badly..."

    He cut off her self-recrimination before it could get out of hand. "It wasn't because of you, Crystal. I'm going to go speak with Luna now."

    The departure of Luna from her home actually hadn't been as bad as Pietro had been afraid it would be. The last time it had been a horrible experience, with him having to sit with his daughter for hours while explaining how it wasn't going to be so bad living on Earth for a while, and didn't she remember when they had lived in the Avenger's mansion? The whole time he had been trying to keep himself from losing it entirely, thinking about how his wife was gone, how he never was able to convey what she meant to him. Things had worked out in the end, at least. This time Luna had been eager to leave, and spent a great deal of her time talking about how she hated Attilan and never wanted to go back.

    The level of anger in her voice seemed to go beyond just what her mother had been forced to do. "Why?" he'd asked her.

    Luna looked embarrassed to have to say anything. "Sometimes people say stuff about me."

    "What things do they say?"

    "That I'm not as good as everybody else because I'm not an Inhuman. That they shouldn't have allowed you and Mom to have me. They don't say things when she can hear them, but I know they say them."

    He'd known that there were always whispered words about him while he was married to Crystal, that he was marked as an outsider from the very start. At first Pietro had done his best to try and make himself a part of that world, doing whatever he thought would lead to greater respect. He was tired of always being set apart from the world around him. Among the Inhumans he'd thought that all of the words that served to set him apart would have no meaning, but instead he'd learned that there were new ones that had the exact same purpose.

    Keeping himself as composed as was possible, Pietro asked "They say things about you?"

    "Not everybody. But I know that some of them do. And they hate you even more. Mom tried to get people to stop saying things, but it didn't work. So when I heard stuff about me, I didn't tell her."

    "You should have told her. I know she would have helped you."

    Luna looked at him and shook her head. "But it didn't help with you, did it? Why am I any different?"

    That had been a question he had no answer to.

    He knocked on his daughter's door carefully. "Luna?"

    "No." The answer came as soon as he finished speaking.

    "You don't even know what I'm asking you."

    "It's always the same thing. I'm not going to talk to her."

    He made an effort to keep the frustration out of his voice. "You can't go for the rest of your life without speaking to your mother. She's very upset with how things have turned out."

    "Not enough to tell that dumb Ronan that he needs to go away. If she loved me she would do that."

    The logic was clear - but how could Pietro possibly explain to Luna that while Crystal did love her more than anything she also needed to do what was best for her people? It had been one of the things he had always known about Crystal, and in the beginning he had loved that she had such a sense of duty. Over time, he learned that her feelings of duty were so strong that they would overwhelm any other feelings she might have. He wasn't sure if that desire was something that came out due to the lofty position her sister occupied in Inhuman society or if it was something that was instilled in all individuals who resided in Attilan.

    (He wondered why he'd never bothered to ask any questions about the matter to Crystal herself.)

    Putting one last effort forward, he said "Luna, if you don't go and speak to your mother then you will be punished."

    "Then I'll tell her I hate her and hope she feels rotten. Is that better?" Luna had unfortunately inherited some of his worst traits, and her temper was foremost among them.

    Pietro wanted to be harsher with his daughter. But by now he was just feeling resigned to never being able to repair things between mother and child. "Then don't say anything. Do what you want to do."

    Luna looked guilty when she looked at her father. All of the lectures she had been given on respect for your parents hadn't made as much of an impact as had seeing Pietro's emotions laid out on his face. In a low voice she said "Dad, I'm sorry. I shouldn't yell at you like that." She went on. "If you really want, I'll try to talk with her."

    Touched by her concern, he said "I don't think that's a good idea. You're still mad with Mom, and I don't think it's good for you to talk now."

    She nodded.

    There was nothing else left to say, and he walked over to where he had put down his phone. "I'm sorry, Crys."

    The nickname had slipped out of his mouth without thinking. He almost went to apologize for speaking in such a familiar way before Crystal could answer. "I didn't think it was going to be any different this time. But if I stop trying, then Luna really will have reason to believe I don't love her." She sighed. "I wish things didn't have to be like this."

    "I know you do. I keep telling Luna that, but she's as stubborn as I can be sometimes."

    Pietro could imagine her smile then. "That would be true. Hopefully it will end up serving her well someday."

    "Yes. It's good to be able to speak your mind." He could find himself filling in what he thought remained unsaid, and reminded himself that Crystal felt differently about how her life should go than he did.

    "Has a date been set yet?" Asking about the wedding wasn't high on Pietro's list of things he wanted to do, but Crystal was certainly going to want to see Luna attend. It didn't matter what he had to do, she was going to be there for her mother's big day.

    "Not yet. He's coming by today to have a meal with Medusa, Black Bolt, and I. Maybe then we can have something decided. It's just not easy to have to wait for something so important to happen."

    In his own experience, everyone he'd know who had gotten married had a fairly short period of time between the engagement and the wedding itself. Wanda and Vision had to win the award for the briefest time-frame, as they had gotten engaged and married on the same day! (If they did end up doing something to renew their vows like Wanda had mentioned to him, Pietro knew that he would sitting right in the front. He was going to do right by her from now on.)

    He tried to rack his brain to see if he had an idea of how long it had taken for him to set a date for his own wedding. The years had made it harder to pinpoint an exact time, and after a little while Pietro went to the most recent example of people getting engaged that he could think of: Angelica and Vance. They still hadn't set an exact date, not being sure of when a good time would come up. Angelica had said that it could be years before they did. "It's not like we don't want to get married, because Vance and I really do. But we're still young, and there's so many other things going on like school. So we both decided to go ahead and make sure that we knew that it was happening at some point, and then just go from there." Young - both of them were the same age as he and Crystal had been when they had married! Hopefully Vance and Angelica could avoid all the troubles that had rocked his own relationship.

    "If he's meeting up with your family like that, then I wouldn't be surprised if a date was coming up very soon."

    For the first time in a long time Crystal could be heard laughing. "Yes, meeting the family is an important step. I remember when I first met your father..."

    Her words were cut off by the sound of shouting in the background. "Who is that on the phone?!"

    Pietro knew who was talking, and he knew that it was not a good sign for Crystal's future. She said quickly "I need to go now."

    "Crystal? Please! Don't go!" But the call ended as the first word came out of his mouth. He stayed as he was for a few minutes more, as if by doing so the call would be restored.

    What could he do? The idea that Ronan held such strong feelings of jealousy towards him had been one that crossed Pietro's mind from time to time, but he'd dismissed those feelings as coming from the selfish part of his soul. This time there had been no mistaking the rage in his voice, or the fear in Crystal's as she ended the call. The signs were all pointing towards danger in the future, or even right now.

    But who _could_ he go and speak with? Pietro had no desire to take anymore risks with Crystal's safety by trying to reach out to her again, and he highly doubted any of the other Inhumans were going to care about what he had to say. Medusa and Black Bolt had been the only ones who seemed to like him, and after the fallout from the revelation that Crystal had been unfaithful they had both cooled a great deal to him. He could hear Medusa's voice saying that the biggest issue he was having was anger at seeing his ex move on, and he was reading the situation wrong. And if it hadn't been for all the evidence that was adding up, Pietro might have thought she was right. A part of him was afraid that even if he was able to go and voice his concerns to her, she would still insist on the marriage going forward just because of how important it was to the good of the Inhumans as a whole.

    The only other people he felt like he could confide in were the other Avengers, and based on what he'd heard from Steve and Jan they wouldn't have much more luck than he did. Short of traveling to Attilan himself and trying to plead with Crystal to listen to his fears, there was no other option that Pietro could think of.

    He wasn't used to feeling so helpless, to being able to see a disaster looming ahead but having no way to avert it. How bad were things going to become? Would Ronan just go on as he was now, wanting to keep Crystal to himself and away from the world at large? Or would things continue to get worse?

    Sitting down with his head in his hands, all Pietro could think to do was to pray. Pray that there would be some way Crystal would be able to be safe, that he wouldn't be the only one who was so concerned, that _someone_ would step in.

    He could only hope that he would be heard.

 

* * *

 

    Making the regular phone calls to Pietro had been a danger ever since Crystal had begun to do so. Things were already tense enough with Ronan right now, and finding out that she was spending so much time speaking to her ex might have been the straw that broke the camel's back. She'd been afraid that if that came to light the marriage would be called off, and then there would be loss of the alliance and the benefits it would bring.

    Ronan had been angry with her before. He'd not liked Crystal speaking to any of the other Avengers, and even trying to suggest that they may need her had brought about harsh words. But there was a coolness in his manner that came about as soon as she hung up. "Tell me. Who were you speaking to?"

    She wished she could think of a good enough lie. "Pietro."

    He tilted his head and began to raise his voice. "So after all I told you about removing that man from your life, you still went out of your way to contact him." Ronan by now was standing right next to her, and placed his hand on her shoulder. "I wonder why you were speaking to him. Were you trying to set up some kind of meeting? Did you want him to whisper sweet nothings in your ear, while inside you laughed at how foolish your husband was going to be?" When she didn't say anything, he grabbed both of her shoulders and pulled her towards him. "Answer me!"

    "Luna. I was trying to talk to Luna." Crystal was now aware of the strength of Ronan's grip, and she thought _I couldn't get away if I needed to._ Of course she wouldn't need to get away, there was nothing really wrong. He was just upset, that's all. "I want to let her know that I still love her."

    He gave her a mocking smile. "Has she spoken with you at any time since she left to live with her father?"

    "No."

    "How many calls have you made since then?"

    "A few every week." She wondered if there was anyone nearby. Just having someone else there might make her heart stop racing.

    "And you have spoken with that man each time you called, correct?"

    "He would be the only one who I could speak with to in regards to Luna."

    "But why did you keep going forward once you knew she was not willing to talk with you?"

    "Because she's my daughter. I can't just have her think that I've forgotten about her." He had to understand how much Luna meant to her. Otherwise, Crystal knew that the chances of her convincing Ronan to allow Luna back in their home following the wedding would be slim to none.

    "But she is part of your old life. Your new life is with me, and I expect..." He released her from his grip and walked over to where she had dropped her phone. "...you to honor me above all others." He picked up the phone, and with a squeeze of his hand crushed it. "Since you do not appear to be able to listen when you are told to do something, there will need to be more drastic measures taken to ensure your compliance." Walking back over to her, he asked "Do you understand?"

    Crystal wanted to scream, to cry, to do anything to show all of the emotions in her head. Her phone had been her link to the world of the Avengers, a world that she wished she could say she was part of fully. She felt set adrift from the world of the Inhumans, where she had been set apart ever since she'd tried to make things work with Pietro. She'd never allowed herself to believe that anyone was going to judge him for not being one of them, but the whispers had reached her ears eventually. It hurt to know such things were being said, and it felt even worse knowing she couldn't say anything about them. If she did speak out, it would end up causing problems for her sister. Being part of the royal family meant that you had to follow a certain standard of protocol. Silence was part of her duties to her people.

    All she could do was to nod and say "I understand."

    Ronan smiled. "Very good." With those words he closed the gap between them and brought Crystal in for a kiss. The feeling of her lips being forced apart was not one she enjoyed, and a shiver ran down her spine as he took one of his hands and ran it over her chest. "Hopefully there will be no further problems, or I may be forced to end our arrangement."

    "There won't be, I promise." She wasn't sure if she was saying that just so that he would get away from her or if she truly meant it.

    "Excellent." He left his hand on her for a few moments longer, and left the room.

    Once she knew she was alone, Crystal went to sit down and try to catch her breath. _You should have known better,_ she told herself. She'd perfectly well known what Ronan's reaction to her contacting Pietro was going to be, and it was stupid to think she could keep it under wraps for very long. Once she'd figured out Luna was not going to be communicating with her the calls should have ended. Yes, hearing about what was going on with the team and the work on the mansion was nice, but it wasn't worth risking everything. The alliance was of key importance to her people, and she needed to do the work to make it happen.

    Shoving aside any thoughts of what had just happened, Crystal began to try and get herself ready for dinner. It was important to look her best for the occasion, and she just had the dress in mind. It had been a present from Jan one Christmas, and Pietro had always said it was one of the nicest things she owned.

    She only hoped that the source of her attire wouldn't come up during the meal.

 

* * *

 

    Ronan seemed to be such a different person during dinner that Crystal wondered if what had happened earlier had been some strange dream of hers. He was perfectly charming to both Medusa and Black Bolt, and directed many compliments at Crystal. Even his smile seemed to be different than it had been a few hours ago. The man before her now was the kind of person she would have wanted to get to know better if they had met under different circumstances. Perhaps it was just her own reluctance to get married that was making her find Ronan more intimidating than he really was.

    Medusa was now laughing at a remark he had made to her, and then he added "It's a pity that we won't be able to have more of these moments once Crystal and I are wed."

    The words felt like a dagger to her soul. "What do you mean?"

    Ronan smiled at her with the same look he had displayed when they had last spoken. "Why, certainly by now you know that you will be coming to live with my people once we've married. It wouldn't be practical for us to live anywhere else. And who knows how long it might be before you can come back to visit Attilan. It would be best to wait until things are settled between us, perhaps when we've had a child or two."

    Leaving her home? Children? Suddenly Crystal was getting more and more thrown in her face from this engagement than she had ever imagined, and she for the first time was wondering if she was going to be able to handle it. Medusa was the first to say anything, replying with "I'm certain that at some point Black Bolt and I could take some time away to come and see Crystal. It's going to be lonely in a new world, and I'd like to try and get her through that."

    The support made her feel a bit better, but that only lasted a moment. His answer to that was "But wouldn't you agree that it is better to allow for time so that Crystal and I can get used to each other? How can we do so if her family is dropping in at the slightest excuse?"

    She looked as if that idea hadn't occurred to her. "You're certainly right, but I would like to see my sister at some point. Just let me know when it would be best to come and see her."

    "Of course I will. I know how much it would mean to you."

    Crystal couldn't help but realize that Ronan was only talking about the value of a visit for Medusa, not for her. He was clearly still angry over her talking to Pietro, and hoped that he wasn't going to mention it to anyone else.

    Almost like he had read her mind, Ronan then said "I discovered something today that was quite distressing to me. It appears that Crystal has not been putting in the effort that is necessary to make this alliance successful."

    All eyes were now on her. Medusa looked to be especially disappointed with her. "Crystal, can you tell me what happened?"

    She felt trapped. "I've been trying to speak with Luna since she went to stay with her father. That means sometimes I've spoken with Pietro." Being dishonest wasn't a thing she normally liked to be, but she knew the situation would be even worse if she were to tell the truth.

    "If you wanted to speak with Luna, then I could have made some arrangements for you to talk. Why did you feel it was necessary to go behind our backs like that?"

    How could she explain why she wanted to reach out to the world beyond her own? What was that going to make everyone think of her? "I'm sorry," was all she could think to say.

    Her sister nodded. "Then I'll trust you won't be doing this again."

    The matter was closed. Crystal almost said that there wasn't any way for her to do that now that her phone was destroyed, but she was afraid of what might happen if Ronan heard her say that.

 _What's happening to me?_ she wondered. She'd never been so nervous about saying what she thought before. The idea of having to be alone with Ronan was also one she couldn't really stomach. There had been something in the way he had acted that made Crystal wonder if this wasn't going to turn out to be a horrible mistake. How was she going to cope when she was living among the Kree, with no allies on her side?

    "Remember your duties," she told herself. Regardless of her feelings on the issue, she was going to be married to Ronan and nothing she did would change that.

    Trying to keep her expression as pleased as possible, Crystal began to eat, not wanting any more thoughts to run out of control.

 

* * *

 

    When Wanda had been given Stephen's phone number, she hadn't expected to use it beyond her pregnancy. Stephen had always been a nearly mythical figure to her, and she still was in awe of him to a certain degree. He'd told her once she'd been given the number "Call whenever you feel the need."

    "What if someone else is trying to reach you then?"

    "I can assure you that anything important is going to go through other means than the phone," had been Stephen's answer. From that point onward Wanda hadn't hesitated before asking him questions on anything unusual that happened.

    But the call she was making this morning was different. Stephen had been the person who had set the whole disaster with the Sentry into motion, yet when she thought about him she didn't feel the same anger she did towards Steve and the others who had been there. Was it because of what she had seen that night at Anna's, or was it because no one could remember exactly what it was he had said that day?

    Wanda still was afraid that Stephen wasn't going to feel comfortable having her around for any real length of time. He had been told of everything that had transpired since that day, although she suspected he had known much of the story as the final encounter with Robert was taking place. The Avengers for the most part felt horrendously guilty over how they had rushed to judgment, and how much worse would you feel if you had been the instigator of something like that?

    "Now or never," Wanda mumbled, and began to punch in the numbers.

    "Hello?" The first time she had heard Stephen Strange in so long wasn't quite as she expected. He sounded so tired - not like he was suffering from a lack of sleep, but a kind of fatigue that lingers within the soul. "Who is this?"

    "It's me, Wanda."

    There was a long pause. "Wanda?" he said, struggling to process what he'd heard. "How... have you been?"

    "Well enough. Vision, the boys, and I are staying with Martha for now. We still aren't sure about what we're going to be doing next, other than getting to know each other all over again." Vision had taken Billy and Tommy with him when he went to Anna's to get all of the things they had left there. She'd encouraged him to do so, as he had not gotten the time alone Wanda had with their children since they had been reunited. The time she and Bonita had spent with Anna had done a good deal to bridge the gap between her and the twins, but Vision still wasn't completely at ease. It could have been from the way he had not fully been able to mourn their loss or guilt over not having been there to help prevent that loss, but either way some father-son time would do a great deal to soothe things over, at least in Wanda's mind.

    "That's good. I'm happy to hear that." The next part was said in a much quieter tone. "I'm sorry that things couldn't have gone and worked out that way earlier. There's so much more I should have done, and by not doing so I failed you. I doubt that my apologies are enough, but I need to offer them to you anyway."

    The level of guilt that Stephen was able to convey in his words made Wanda wish she was there with him, to be able to show that she held no anger towards him. She would just have to try with her words alone. "I don't know what else there was you could have done. Agatha was the only one who knew where Tommy and Billy were, and she couldn't tell anyone because of what Robert did with her when he brought her spirit back into this world. No one was looking, because there was no reason to think looking was even necessary. You don't hold any blame for me not finding my children sooner."

    "Maybe." He didn't sound convinced. "Then you were able to find out what really happened with Agatha? I still wish I'd checked up more after she was supposed to have died, but there was so much else going on."

    "She did die then. It was only due to the actions of the Sentry that her spirit came back into our world. He didn't know what he was doing by bringing her back, and couldn't get her to go away no matter what he did."

    For the first time since they started talking Stephen sounded like he was pleased. "Ah. So I can guess that no one ever taught him that you should never bring up anything that you can't put down?"

    "I don't think he was taught anything at all. Based on the way he went about using his talents, he just did whatever came to mind. I wish I had been able to learn if the powers he had came from some kind of outside source or if there was something within him that set all this into motion. From what I've heard, Robert isn't in any state to tell us. I don't think he ever will."

    "If I get the chance, I might go and see if there's anything that I could tell by looking him over. I still can't believe that there was someone walking around with such an abundance of power and I never noticed anything about him. What other things have I missed while I've..." Stephen trailed off before he could say any more.

    "You've got so many other things that you take on every day that missing a few things is going to happen from time to time. You aren't a god, Stephen. You can't be everywhere at all times."

    Wanda had hoped that she would be able to ease some of his worries, but his next words pointed away from that direction. "I have responsibilities that should be first on my list of priorities, instead of other things. I need to try and look beyond what I already see." He then changed the subject. "I hope I'm not coming across as being rude, but why did you decide to call me?"

    "Well, it's been a while since I've had a chance to speak with you, and now that I have some more free time on my hands I thought I would touch base with you." She still didn't know if it was going to be a good idea to mention the rest of her plans to Stephen. That was something that was better shared in person. "And if you'd like, I was also thinking about coming over and seeing you today. Would that be any trouble for you?"

    "When would you be coming?" He sounded so wary that Wanda began to think this wasn't such a good idea after all.

    "Well, I was thinking of stopping in sometime this afternoon. Or would the evening work better for you?"

    "No, please come sooner." Stephen didn't sound to be upset with the idea of her visiting, but the rapid way he had spoken of when a good time to stop in would be seemed unusual. Based on what Wanda knew, he normally didn't have a very strict schedule due to the chances of so many different things popping up. It could just be that things were more likely to happen at night, or that later on there were fewer people who could be counted on to assist if something did go wrong.

    "Then I'll be over as soon as I can. How long has it been since I went to see you, a year or so? The time just goes by so fast sometimes. It's going to be nice to catch up."

    "And sometimes time just goes too slow to handle. I look forward to seeing you, Wanda."

    The phrasing struck her as odd, but she was happy that she could get her foot in the door. "And I'm looking forward to seeing you as well. Goodbye, Stephen."

    Now she at least had something to occupy part of her day. If Stephen did reject her request to study under him, Wanda at least figured she could spend time catching up with an old friend. Although she counted Stephen as being one of her closest friends, they still didn't spend all that much time together. Part of the reason for that was both of them having busy schedules that often left little time for relaxation, but another factor was in where Wanda normally opted to turn for advice related to magic. Agatha had always been there when she needed to get help, and now that her spirit was finally free to return to where it belonged her mentor could no longer be counted on to help her out.

    Going to find Martha, Wanda said "Tell Vizh and the boys when they get back that I've gone to see Stephen. I should be back in time for dinner."

    "Well, I hope that things turn out right for you. Let us know how everything works out."

    "I will." And Wanda made her way outside, taking the first steps into a new life.

 


	3. Cure for Pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wanda's meeting with Stephen leads to some painful truths coming to light.

    While many people who were entering the Sanctum of Doctor Strange felt uneasy, Wanda couldn't recall having ever felt that way. She hadn't been there a great number of times, but each time that she had she felt welcomed. Of course there was no way you could look around and not realize this wasn't a normal home, yet Wanda could see all of the little touches that both Stephen and Wong put in to make the place their own.

    "Wanda! It's so good to see you. You've certainly been having an eventful few weeks. The mansion, being framed, finding your children... How are you holding up?" Wong clearly looked happy to see her, and that eased some of her fears on how she would be received.

    "I'm doing wonderful, thank you. It's definitely been a bit of a wild ride, but I'm glad that everything turned out the way it did." She would have been happy to talk with Wong for longer, but knowing Stephen was waiting for her made her choose to end it for now. "Stephen should be expecting me. Where is he now?"

    "I think he's in his study. If you don't see him there, I'd look in the library."

    Wanda smiled. "Thanks. Maybe we can chat for a while after I've finished today."

    "Oh, yes, we should." He sounded so eager that she almost felt guilty for not sticking around. The isolation that was part of Stephen's path in life was clearly also something that Wong had to deal with. Hopefully if she was able to follow through with her plans Wanda could try and do something about that.

    "Then I'll take a little time out of my day." Wong smiled back at her and went off to do whatever it was he needed to do.

    As she headed for the door of Stephen's study, her nerves began to grow once more. What if he had changed his mind about her visiting? She knocked on the door before she could reconsider anything.

    And as the door opened, Wanda found herself standing before Stephen Strange for the first time in so long.

    The first impression she got was that he had been ill. Stephen looked as tired as he'd sounded on the phone, and he seemed to have lost weight. He glanced over her for a second before saying "Wanda."

    Deciding to be a little more affectionate than she would normally be, Wanda answered with "I'm so glad to see you, Stephen," while walking over and embracing him. From the feel when she wrapped her arms around him, he had clearly lost more weight than she'd first thought. His hands also were shaking more than they normally did, and while Stephen didn't seem to be uncomfortable with Wanda hugging him he also wasn't very relaxed.

    After a moment, he said "Come in and have a seat."

    Doing so, Wanda realized that the fatigue she had noticed in Stephen's face seemed to carry over to his movements. Most of the times she had seen him before he was much more active than he was now, and she once again wondered if he had been very sick recently. She opted not to ask about that, feeling that the first question out of her mouth shouldn't be "Have you been sick?" That wasn't going to go over well.

    In fact, Stephen was the first one to ask a question. "Is there something you would like to say to me, Wanda?"

    Under different circumstances the question would have come off as being an accusation of some kind. But Stephen didn't sound upset, rather quiet and resigned. So her response was "I just wanted to come and see you. It's been a while, like I said on the phone. I don't like losing touch with any of my friends, and with everything that happened recently I realized that anything could happen to me. And I know that you don't have many visitors these days. So I came here."

    "I can't understand why you're not angry with me. I nearly ruined your life."

    "You may have pointed the Avengers towards me, but they were the ones who didn't ask questions and threw me aside so easily. If someone on the team had started to look at the evidence then they might have figured out something wasn't right. But even if you hadn't stepped in, then the Sentry might not have stopped with the attacks until we were all dead. You might have saved our lives." The idea that Stephen coming in when he did had been one that came to Wanda while she was relaxing at the hotel. Reflecting on what she knew of Robert Reynolds, he was so single-minded on achieving his goal of being a hero he lost sight of what he was doing to get there. If there hadn't been a scapegoat to point fingers at, then the Avengers wouldn't have disbanded for a time and allowed him access to a roster spot.

     "Don't let me off the hook so easily, Wanda. I need to be able to accept blame where it's due. I've always had problems with admitting fault to myself. I won't permit other people to make that harder for me to do. I was wrong to accuse you, wrong for allowing the Sentry to grow unchecked, and wrong for not ever trying to do something about the loss of your children." There were a few tears in his eyes that did not fall far, and Stephen blinked a few times before turning away from her.

    Trouble accepting blame? In the entire time she'd known him Stephen had always been candid about his failures. Wanda couldn't remember ever having seen him not take responsibility for the wrongs he had done, and even if he did have issues with that the sheer level of disgust in his voice was well out of proportion to what he might have done. Worse yet, there wasn't any strong current of anger with himself that might have come with such a belief. Stephen sounded more matter of fact, as if whatever he was saying should be evident to anyone. Wanda wished she had the right words to set him free of his guilt, but struggled to think of what they might be.

     At last she said "But that's in the past now. Why don't we find a way to move forward?"

    "How do you propose we do that?" He was still looking down at his hands, and the increased tremor she had first noticed didn't seem to be going away. Was it some kind of new injury?

     Taking a deep breath, she said "I've been thinking about doing more to study magic for some time now. I've never had enough spare time in the past, and when you're an Avenger then there's always something coming up. Agatha, before she left this world, said that I should think about seeing if you would be willing to help me along the way."

    Stephen sat quietly for a few moments. Finally he asked "Is there something in particular that you're interested in researching?"

    It was a start. He hadn't said no. "Well, what with all of the things that happened recently I thought that getting some more information on chaos magic might be a good place to start. I know a little bit about where the general origin of my powers come from, and I want to see if there's anything else I should know about."

    Thinking about it for a moment, Stephen answered "Most of the research that I have on chaos magic is primarily dedicated to the more abstract aspects as well as general theory, not so much the practice of it. I could look into getting some more materials focused on practice, but that may take a while."

    "I can start with what you have. I've been using my powers for long enough to have some ideas about practice, but theory is something I need to know more about."

    "Then I can point you towards a few books. You can find them in the library, third shelf on the right."

    In other circumstances Wanda would have thought that Stephen was trying to get her to leave. But he sounded more like he was expecting her to want to leave at the slightest excuse and would feel better about it if she had a reason for doing so. "I can go and get those books now. Then maybe you can help me with any questions I might have about what's in them."

    He nodded, and once again she felt alarmed by the expression on his face. While Stephen was doing his best to hide it, there was clearly a strong undercurrent of misery in his eyes. She almost stayed in the room and tried to talk to him a little bit more, but not knowing what to say Wanda instead went to get the books that had been mentioned.

    While heading to the library, Wanda tried to think of a source for the profound unhappiness she was seeing. Had something gone badly in a mission, was it because of everything that had happened with her, or worst of all was there no reason whatsoever?

    By the time she had reached the shelves she was no closer to an answer than she had been in the beginning. The first book she grabbed looked to be quite interesting judging by the title, and when Wanda began to pull out its neighbor she heard a strange sound.

    Confused, she knelt down to get a closer look. The sound had been a bit of a clinking noise, and she wasn't sure what had caused it. It took moving another book for her to get a good look at whatever was there.

    It was a half-empty bottle of rum. The presence of alcohol in Stephen's home wasn't something that would surprise Wanda, as she had known him to enjoy a drink at times. She was more disturbed by the fact the bottle had been hidden from sight. It of course was possible that it had just been put there at some point and was then forgotten about. She'd lost count of the number of times something like that had been discovered at the mansion. Clint was one of the worst offenders in that regard, and Wanda had to suppress a chuckle as she thought about how she'd completely lost it during the early days when a bunch of arrows was discovered in the fridge.

    Putting down the books she was going to be taking with her, she went to inspect elsewhere. _If it's just one then I'll know it's alright._ She wasn't sure she really believed that, and when she found a second hidden bottle, this one of whiskey, a numbness began to spread through her.

    Stephen was most likely an alcoholic. Now that Wanda thought about it, she could recall a few times while she had been pregnant that he had sounded a bit odd, but since every call she made had been due to some worry of hers it hadn't mattered all that much. The increased tremor in his hands she had seen now seemed to come from the lack of any alcohol in his system, and she was willing to bet that the reason Stephen had told her to come earlier in the day was because at night he was going to be getting drunk. And it would even provide an explanation for why he had never gotten back to her after she had called him following the attack that cost her Billy and Tommy. He'd probably gotten the message, but if he had been drinking when he heard it there was a chance that he wouldn't remember it the next day.

    Thinking on that, Wanda recalled how Tony had said that he didn't think the Sentry had anything to do with Stephen's not getting back to her. Had he known about his problem, or did he just strongly suspect it? How Tony would have learned such a thing was unclear to her, because he and Stephen didn't interact all that much. Also, she couldn't recall a time when Stephen had appeared to be seriously under the influence. Remembering the time she'd invited him over to her home for the holidays, Wanda did notice he'd been able to drink quite a few glasses of wine without showing any signs of it affecting him, and he'd laughed it off when she mentioned it. "Compared to the days after my accident, this is nothing." At the time she'd thought that he had just been using alcohol during a rough period of time to help with the pain he was feeling. But now Wanda viewed it in a different light. Stephen hadn't gone and resorted to drinking as a way of dealing with his problems - he just no longer had a need to hide them any longer. With no work to require a steady hand, why not go to something that's served you well enough in the past?

    Wanda also wondered how much Wong knew. It seemed like it would be impossible to live with someone and not have any idea that they had a serious problem with alcohol, but then again he was hiding those bottles. So it was plausible that he was also trying to hide the extent that he was drinking from his friend.

    (She suspected that even if Stephen didn't care about what most people thought about his drinking, he would still do his best to hide it from Wong. The reasons for this weren't something she was planning on bringing up, but she knew Stephen well enough to read the emotions in his face.)

    The second major thing she was now wondering about was if the drinking was the reason behind the profound unhappiness that Wanda could see. She most certainly didn't count herself as being an expert on alcohol abuse, but she hadn't heard of the lack of drinking making people so sad before. Anger, yes, but not sadness. Deep down, Wanda felt that the two things were connected, but maybe not in such a direct manner as that. But she still couldn't be sure.

    She realized that she had been gone for much longer than it would have normally taken to go and get the books. Hurrying back to the study, Wanda said in a rush "Sorry I took so long. But there were so many different books I was looking at, and I guess I just lost track of the time."

    Stephen didn't look like he had moved all that much since she had left. He shrugged in response to her words. "It doesn't matter. It's been a while since I've had the chance to go through everything. I know that I should get around to it, but in the end it just turns out to be another way that I've failed in my duties."

    Wanda wanted to cry. She wished she could do or say something that would bring a smile back to Stephen's face, or at the least take away some of the sorrow that lingered over him. Hearing words of condemnation coming out of his mouth just added to her feelings of helplessness. "Sometimes we have to put aside things that are important so we can go and take care of matters that are even more urgent. I know how seriously you take all of your duties. It's okay to not be able to do everything all at once."

    He didn't react to what she was saying at all. "May I see the books you chose?" She handed them over. Looking at the title of one, he commented "Ndiaye, not the first one I would have chosen. She can be a little too technical for a beginner. Crawford's a better place to start. I'm glad you took that one. Do you only think you can handle two at once, or did you just not want to take more? Because you can borrow as many books as you like."

    "Well, I looked through the first one a little bit before I came back, and I think that if I have any questions I can just go and ask you anything. I didn't think you'd mind how many books I wanted, but I've got some other things on my plate so I'm just going to take it slow for now."

    "What things would that be?" Stephen was clearly interested in her plans, but he still didn't appear to have any enthusiasm in his tone. Everything about him seemed deadened.

    "First of all, Vision and I are going to go and fix up our old house. I never stopped paying on it, for whatever reason, and we both agree we need a place to stay now that the mansion isn't an option for us. Martha's being wonderful in letting us stay with her until we can get the place up to shape again. Pietro also wants to catch up with his nephews, and I think that he also needs to get his mind off what's happening with Crystal. Did you hear she's getting married again?" The question felt silly when it came out of her mouth, because how would he have found that out? Neither Pietro nor Crystal were close to Stephen, and Wanda had only found out after all of the disruption in her life.

    "She is? To who?"

    "Ronan the Accuser. I'll be honest and say I have no fondness for him." The words that he had spoken during the time Vision and her were first able to admit to their feelings for each other still stung Wanda. It wasn't what had been said as much as it was the mocking tone in which the words were delivered. "I might have been more open to the idea if it hadn't been for one of the things Ronan ordered. He told Crystal she needed to send Luna to live with Pietro, because he didn't want another man's child around. Pietro says that Luna's so angry with her mother now, and Crystal's heartbroken. I don't think she would go through with the marriage if it wasn't for the fact that it's part of a deal to form an alliance between the Inhumans and the Kree. But she's always been determined to do her duty towards her people, no matter what the cost might be."

    Stephen said "Duty is an important thing, but I would think that your child would be even more important. Are you concerned about her?"

     "I think that in the end she's going to be quite unhappy. But I don't know if things are going to be worse than that in the end." Pietro was much more concerned than Wanda felt, and he had brought up how Crystal was calling him much more now that Luna was staying with him. It may have seemed more ominous to him due to his own unresolved feelings, because Wanda felt that it made sense for her to try and reach out to her daughter.

    Stephen nodded. She noticed how he was mumbling something to himself, which she was only able to make out with some effort. "Not yet."

    Not able to remain silent any longer, Wanda asked "Stephen, are you feeling alright? You look so tired, and I was wondering if you were a little stressed."

    "There's nothing to worry about. I'm still doing what I have to do. If things are bad, then wouldn't you say it was what I deserved for who I am?"

    "Well, do you think that the people who care about you might feel badly if they knew you were hurting?" She wanted so much to get him to open up in some way.

    Stephen looked so guilty after hearing Wanda say those words that she wished she hadn't said them, or at least had thought of a better way of phrasing it. "Everything is fine with me, Wanda. I'm sorry that you were worried. Please don't bother yourself with thoughts about how I am."

    And there was nothing left Wanda could think to say.

 

* * *

 

    Eventually their conversation shifted back over to magic and the things she wanted to study. In spite of the sadness that engulfed Stephen, he was still able to offer Wanda advice and to point her in the direction of people she might want to speak with. But she still recalled previous conversations, and much energy he had given to them. Now it was like that energy had been snuffed out.

    They had lunch, sandwiches that were brought by Wong. Wanda had eaten two of them, but Stephen had barely touched his food. By the time he was able to eat a few nibbles of his meal she was already finished. The reason behind Stephen's weight loss was now clear.

    Wong stayed around for some time, keeping his eyes on Stephen. After watching him push around the food on his plate for almost fifteen minutes, he left the room. Wanda knew that he was just as worried as she was, if not more.

    It was mid-afternoon when she decided to leave Stephen for now. "Thank you for having me today. I'd like to meet up with you again at some point soon. Maybe I'll bring Billy and Tommy. They'd love to meet their Uncle Stephen again, wouldn't you say?"

    "I suppose they would," he replied, but there was still no real emotion in his voice. "Goodbye, Wanda."

    "See you later," was her final message for the day. She walked out of the study and made it a few feet before beginning to cry.

     "Wanda?" Wong's voice broke her out of the spell she had been under. "Are you okay?"

    She gave a strange choked laugh, thinking about how she had tried asking the same thing earlier today. "It's Stephen... I had no idea things were like this for him now. I keep thinking about how long it had been since we really talked, and how different things were then. And that doesn't take into account what I found in the library."

    He sighed. "That's where he's keeping his alcohol now? I knew it had to be somewhere, but I never saw him taking any."

    "So you know." It was more a statement of fact than a question.

    "It's nearly impossible to live with someone and not have an idea about what they're doing, and sometimes Stephen doesn't try all that hard to hide it. There's been a few times that I've found him passed out." Wong looked like he was relieved to be able to share this with another person.

     "Are you going to go and get rid of it now?"

    "No. Even if I were to go around throwing out every last drop of alcohol that I can find here, Stephen can still go out and get more. And if he didn't, he can still go out to a bar and get drinks there. I tried that solution at one point, but all I ended up doing was stressing myself out too much. I cannot control how much Stephen chooses to drink."

    The answer didn't feel like too much of a surprise to Wanda. "But how long has it been this way? All the times I've spoken with Stephen in the past, I've never seen him like this before."

    "Everything's been building up for a long time now, but I would say things have only gotten real bad over the last four years or so. Before that he still was drinking too much, but he wasn't as unhappy as he is now."

    She blinked. "Four _years?_ How could I have not noticed anything changing over that time?"

    Wong gave her a wan smile. "Because Stephen is good at hiding things. He always tries to put on a mask before he goes and deals with anyone. Unless you spend all your time with him you aren't going to understand how he really feels. I even didn't notice until I saw him one day just sitting and staring into space with such a sad expression on his face I almost started crying. And how many other people spend a regular amount of time with him?"

     "How has he been able to still carry out his duties if he's been so miserable?"

    "A lot of alcohol, I would guess. And with what I know about how Stephen operates, he's going to go out and do what he has to do as long as he is still conscious. I once had to drag him to bed with a fever of one hundred and three degrees because he was still trying to figure out where some artifacts had come from and how dangerous they might be. Even then he still wanted me to alert him to any troubles that might come up."

    She asked "Has Stephen tried to go and talk to someone, or have you tried to get him to get help?"

    "He actually did go and see someone around three years ago. He never came out and said he was doing it, but I thought that was what he was doing when he always left at a certain time each week. That lasted for about a year."

    "Do you have any idea why he stopped?"

    Wong answered with "Because it wasn't helping any. In fact, I think that he was getting worse."

    While it was a good thing to hear that Stephen had at least tried to get some help, it was discouraging to hear that said help had done him no good. Wanda felt completely helpless. "Have you tried talking to him? I tried to ask if he was feeling okay when we were speaking earlier, and he just brushed me off and said he was sorry for making me worry."

    Wong looked away and said "When I realized he wasn't doing well I tried to get him to talk to me. But I got pretty much the same reaction you did. Then I switched over to something more concrete, talking about how I was worried about how little he was eating. But..." he sighed, "Stephen then just couldn't stop apologizing and promising he was going to try and eat more. His exact words to me were that he knew how much effort I put into making his food and how selfish it was for him to not be eating it. For a little while he did eat more, but then he went back to only having a few bites of whatever he had. I think that if he wasn't drinking so much he would have lost a dangerous amount of weight by now."

     She'd had a faint hope that Wong would say something that would be the magic touch that would pull Stephen out of his despair and return him to the way he was before. "Do you think that Stephen would accept Tony coming by to speak with him at some point? He may not be able to help with the sadness, but he could maybe take him to an AA meeting sometime."

    "I would think that might be a good idea - _if_ the only issue we were dealing with was Stephen's drinking. But I've noticed that the amount of drinking he does goes up the more unhappy he is. I do believe that some of that unhappiness is a result of his alcohol abuse, but I also think that one of the reasons Stephen has even less control over how much he drinks now is because he's using alcohol as a way of blotting out his pain. If something isn't done about that at the same time, then anything we try to get him to stop is going to be doomed to failure."

    The logic behind Wong's thoughts made sense to Wanda. "Is there anything that you think I can do to help?"

    He looked defeated as he said "Part of me hopes that having someone else around might help to trigger some kind of change in Stephen, but I very much doubt that. If you could get him to talk to you about what's going on in his mind it might make a difference. I wish that he would do the same with me, but with how our relationship is he doesn't like to impose on me any more than he has to."

    Wanda knew better than to say what she was thinking. Part of Stephen's rationale for not being able to confide in Wong was likely do to the challenges presented by their respective statuses in each other's lives. But there was something else that she had known for some time that made it even more risky. She hadn't even mentioned to Stephen that she knew about that part of himself that he worked so carefully to keep hidden. "I do want to stick around for a while so I can try to see if I can learn more about my magic and the more general practice of the art. If can help take some of the weights off of his shoulders that might make a bit of a difference." Making sure to look Wong directly in the eyes, she added "And if I can't help Stephen, I can at least make a difference for you. It can't be easy having to watch one of your friends fall apart so badly without having anyone there to help you in turn."

    His face became so pleased upon hearing her words that Wanda was glad she had said she would be there for him. "It's killing me inside to not be able to make Stephen feel better. I wish I could somehow get across to him that there isn't anything wrong with having problems, or with sharing them with your friends. There are days when I think that Stephen doesn't really think he's changed when he goes and looks in the mirror."

    It was something Wanda had feared as well. She didn't know if any of her words would be enough, and so settled nodding her head repeatedly.

    Not wanting all of their words to be ones of morose, Wong then asked her "How are things with your family? I still can't believe what happened with Billy and Tommy."

    This was a much happier topic. "Vision went out with the boys today to get all of the things they had left at Anna's. He hasn't gotten the chance to spend time alone with them like I did, so I'm glad he's getting the chance now. I think that he still feels guilty for what happened after he was taken apart and lost his emotions, but spending time with his children is going to make a big difference in that. Oh, and he's also meeting up with Simon later on this week."

    "He is? Have the two of them had a chance to really talk to each other since they fell out with each other?"

    "No. I think that when the Sentry told Vision that he had played a role in making Simon act the way he did made him realize it was time to bury the hatchet. It could have also been due to us finally admitting that we both still had feelings for each other, and they weren't going away any time soon. That would have made Vizh realize he didn't have to worry about me and Simon any longer." Wanda hadn't completely realized how much Vision had thought about that until very recently. A part of her husband thought of Simon as being the version of him that could fulfill all of her desires without having the drawbacks he did. It was nonsense - in spite of them sharing some interests, Simon and Vision were completely different when it came to their personalities. The time that she had spent together with Simon had confirmed that for her.

    "Well, whatever reason he's doing it I'm glad they're at least trying to talk now. I still remember that time we talked about the rift that had come between them, and how you missed seeing them act like brothers."

    Wanda did remember that time, and she also could recall what else had happened that evening. She and Wong had been talking about things that had gone on in their lives lately, and the conversation had shifted to how lonely they were both feeling. (Maybe if she'd asked some more questions she would have gotten an idea about how things were going for Stephen earlier.)

     Which one made the first move she wasn't sure. But at some point they had started kissing, and Wanda guessed that things would have gone further if they both hadn't backed out. She didn't know what Wong's reasoning was for ending things, but in her case she had come to the realization that if she went to bed with him then she would be causing pain to a friend of hers. There wasn't really any reason for Stephen to not know what had happened between them, and when Wanda thought about it she could see the probable expression on his face. Later on both of them had been in agreement about how things would have become awkward if they had ended up sleeping together, and by mutual agreement they never brought it up again.

    "It was always something that bothered me, especially having seen how close the two of them were before. But I knew that unless either one of them was willing to try to make peace then there wasn't much point in trying to get that to happen. Simon did kind of indicate in the past that he didn't really understand what made Vision feel so angry with him. So that just added to the problems."

    Wanda would have stayed for longer, but she took a glimpse at her watch and realized that if she did want to get back to Martha's in time for dinner she was going to need to leave now. "I didn't realize how late it was. So I need to get going. I'm going to be stopping by later on this week, I promise. Should I call Stephen before coming over, or should I just drop in?"

     "Just come by. There's a chance that Stephen's still going to feel guilty about what happened with you and might tell you to stay away. If you come over unannounced, then I think you've got a better chance of being able to stick around."

    "That's what I'll do. Thank you, Wong." She gave him a quick hug before heading out the door.

 

* * *

 

    The experience of being greeted by her family when she came home was one that Wanda doubted she would ever stop enjoying. Tommy raced over to her as soon as she stepped inside, saying "Guess what, Mommy! Aunt Anna has a new jungle gym! It's really cool! Teddy says Uncle Tony gave it to them as a present since they can't go to the park for now. I asked him why they couldn't go, and he said it was 'cause some people have to talk to his mommy first."

    "Well, that sounds exciting. Did you and Daddy do anything else today?"

    "We got to go see where we used to live when Billy and me were babies. Daddy says that we're going to live there again soon. We had to go open all the windows."

    Billy added "There was lots of dusty stuff all over. It smelled kind of funny, too. But I got to see where our room is going to be, and the yard's really neat. And we'll still be close to Teddy and Aunt Anna and Grandma, so I think I'll like it." He asked "Where were you, Mommy?"

    "I went to go see a good friend of mine. He's your Uncle Stephen, and he helped me out when you were born. It was nice to talk to him for a while, and maybe we'll get to go see him soon. I think that will be fun, yes?"

    While both Billy and Tommy seemed interested in getting to meet Stephen, Vision looked at her with concern in his face. Wanda had done her best to try and keep her worries out of her face as she brought up Stephen, but he could see through her mask. She mouthed the words "I'll tell you later," as she put down her things.

     Dinner was filled with the boys talking about their day and asking all kinds of questions to Martha. They wanted to know a lot more about their Uncle Simon, "because we haven't seen him yet," as Tommy explained. Hearing that at some point soon he was going to come and visit was something they were glad to hear.

    Vision said "In a few days I'm going to be having lunch with Uncle Simon, and then we'll talk about when he can come and visit. We haven't talked for a long time, so I want to catch up with him first."

    It wasn't the whole truth, but Billy and Tommy accepted it without any fuss. It took a bit longer than usual to get them put to bed, due to all the excitement of their day out with Daddy. But once the lights were finally turned out, Vision turned to her and asked "Wanda, what's wrong? I could see something in your eyes when you came back from Stephen's."

    She said "We need to be alone before we can talk." Nothing she was going to say was going to be too much of a secret, but privacy was best for anything like the matters they would be discussing.

    It was in the newly-made up guest room where Wanda began to relate what had happened today. "I didn't have any idea how bad things were for Stephen until I saw him. There was just so much sadness in him, and nothing I did or said could make a difference. Wong says he's been like this for almost four years now. And there's another problem: I believe that he's an alcoholic."

    "What led you to think that? I have little doubt it is true, but I also know that you would not make such a statement without some kind of proof."

    "I found some bottles he was hiding in the library. And if I hadn't figured it out after that, Wong confirmed it when we spoke later on. I don't know if the misery and the drinking are directly connected or not, but I know now that I need to keep in touch with him. Stephen spends too much time alone, and needs to know there are others he can lean on from time to time."

    Vision pondered that for a moment. "I was under the impression that Stephen could rely on Wong to help him out when he was in need. Has something changed?"

    "There are a variety of reasons why he doesn't ask for more from him. One is that he feels it's selfish to ask Wong to do more than he does. And there's another reason, as well."

    She may not have come out and said what that reason was, but Vision clearly understood what was being implied. "Do you think that it might be helpful to get a professional involved?"

    "The only person I can think of is Doc Samson, and he's said to me that he doesn't really get magic. That wouldn't bode well for Stephen being able to connect with him. And he refused to admit to me when I asked him that anything was wrong. I'm not sure if he really believes that or if he just doesn't feel he can share anything with anyone else."

    "How did he react to your proposal of studying magic?"

    Wanda noticed as soon as Vision asked the question a few tears were coming out of her eyes, which would explain the change in subject. "I got some books to read from him on the subject of chaos magic. With how he seemed to be feeling, I didn't want to go farther than that."

    "Then once you have finished with those try and speak to him again. See how things have turned out since you last spoke."

    That sounded like a good idea, and Wanda went to go see if she had gotten any calls during the day. There were two, one from Bonita wanting to come over at some point soon, and the second was from Pietro. He sounded very upset when he was speaking, saying that Wanda should call back as soon as she could. But it was too late for her to do so now, and she silently vowed to go and see her brother tomorrow in person instead of calling him back.

    She could only hope the reason for his call wasn't too dire.

 


	4. Bang and Blame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things between Ronan and Crystal reach a breaking point, but who will tell the story first?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: attempted rape.

    Since the loss of her phone, Crystal had been feeling more alone than she ever had before.

    Before she had met Pietro, she had been friends with a great deal of other Inhumans, but as time went on her friends kept on pulling away from her. She had done her best to rebuild those friendships once Pietro was no longer part of her life, but Crystal had not been able to do so. The best she had gotten from those who had once been close to her was a sense of pity.

    The announcement of her engagement to Ronan had been greeted by those former friends with detachment. None had come to see her and ask how she was doing, or if Crystal really wanted to go forward with the marriage. It had been the final slamming of a door on her old life.

    Medusa had gone and made an effort to see if Luna was now willing to talk to her, but Luna had asked her aunt "Why isn't my mother calling me herself?"

    The answer to that had apparently not been good enough for her daughter, and Medusa had told Crystal "Luna says that she doesn't want me to call her again. She says if you want to talk to her you should do it yourself."

    Without her phone, that was impossible. She wondered why she hadn't told Medusa the whole story about what had happened that day. She had tried to think of a way to tell her, but each time the words seemed to get caught in her throat. The situation with Ronan was now serving to create division between the two sisters, and Crystal wondered how much she was to blame. She'd chosen to reach out to Pietro knowing that there would be trouble if she was discovered, and now Medusa likely didn't think she could be trusted.

    "I wonder if this is how things will be after I'm married," she pondered. She hadn't bothered to leave her home for the last week, ever since Ronan had blown up at her over her efforts to contact Luna. A date had now been set, and in a month Crystal would be Ronan's wife. She had asked him during the dinner what she would be doing once she was married to him.

    "You will be my wife, of course." A part of her had hoped he would say that she would help him in managing the affairs of the Kree. Crystal had asked if that would perhaps come later, and his eyes had narrowed at her as he answered "My people would not accept an outsider managing their affairs. It would be best for all concerned if you were to make yourself as scarce as possible."

    So it looked like isolation was going to be the reality of her life fairly soon. There had very nearly been a break for her, as Sue Richards had called hoping to get her to come over for a pre-wedding get-together. With her phone no longer working, Sue had to call Medusa instead, but they were able to speak. "Just come for a weekend or something. It's been a while, and we'd all be glad to see you. And I can help you enjoy the last few times of your single life."

    More than almost anything else, Crystal wanted to go and relax with her friend. Putting aside any of her worries and being able to spend time with one of her closest friends was something that made her heart sing. Sue hadn't sounded all that pleased to be hearing about her marriage, and that made her wonder if it would be possible to confide some of her worries to her. Yet she knew that she was going to have to talk with Ronan before she agreed to anything to avoid the trouble she had caused last time.

    His first question had been "Are you and Sue going to be alone?"

    Not liking where this was going, Crystal said "She said that everyone wanted to see me and..."

    "So that means Johnny would be there." Ronan tilted his head. "It strikes me as rather odd how you keep trying to maintain contact with your former lovers. Is it not enough that soon you will have me?"

    Her heart began to thud. Her relationship with Johnny had never gone as far as he was implying, and there was something dark in his eyes when he mentioned soon having her. "If you would like, I'll tell Sue I can't make it."

    "Excellent." And with those words he brought her in for another kiss, this time longer than before. His hands traveled all over her body as he said "Soon you will be mine in every way."

    She'd made the call to Sue while Ronan stood and listened in. Sue asked her "Crystal, are you sure that you don't want to come? I know that the Avengers miss having you around while they're all working together. Is there something wrong?"

    "I just don't think I'll have the time, that's all." And she'd hung up before there could be any more questions. Ronan had given her a smile of approval as the call ended.

    He was going to come and see her again today, and Crystal knew that she had to make the best impression possible so she could to get what she was planning on asking for.

    There wasn't much of a guest list being put forward for the wedding, which was something she felt relieved about. Almost everyone, with the exception of Medusa and Black Bolt, were those who had connections to Ronan. Crystal still wasn't sure how she was going to feel about the people her soon-to-be husband held close, as she hadn't met any of them yet. But there was one name missing that she was determined should be there, or least expected to be.

    Luna. Her daughter. While Crystal still wasn't all that confident that she was going to want to be there, at the very least she needed to know that she was wanted. Leaving Luna out of one of the most important days of her life would cement the idea that Crystal really didn't care about her all that much, and that it hadn't hurt her to send her to live with her father. By sending the invitation, Luna could at least get the idea that her mother still wanted her to be part of her new life.

    She had already planned some of the things she was going to tell Ronan. That she would make it clear that Pietro was not invited along with Luna. How Medusa could make all the arrangements to get her to and from the ceremony, so there would be no chance of Crystal running into anyone else. That she would do anything he wanted afterwards as long as she could get this one thing.

    (The last part was the one that was the hardest, but it was essential if she was going to have any hope of getting this request.)

    "Hello, Crystal."

    Ronan's arrival had gone unoticed by her. "Hello, Ronan," she said while trying to build up her nerve.

    "And how have you been? You haven't been speaking to any of the wrong people, have you?"

    Crystal got the impression she was being taunted. He knew perfectly well that without her phone she had no way of speaking to anyone. "No, I haven't been."

    "Very good." He gestured towards the bed where she was sitting. "May I have a seat?"

    She didn't think that she had much of a choice. "Yes, you may." She at one point had suggested to Ronan that they meet elsewhere, maybe somewhere that was more public. He had asked her why she didn't want more privacy, and the idea had been abandoned once Crystal had seen how upset he was getting.

    He sat down next to her, but to Crystal's relief he didn't make any moves to touch her. "I am glad that everything seems to be going well now. Just think, in around a month you will be my wife."

    The way he kept on bringing up the subject made her feel more uneasy. "I know."

    "I was wondering if you would be interested in making a trip to my home before the wedding. It would give you some time to get used to the place."

    She wished that he would be honest with her about why she was invited. Crystal wasn't a fool - she perfectly well knew that Ronan had no desires to have her go and mingle with his people. Her stomach began to turn somewhat as she replied "I think that I might need a little time to think about it before I say anything."

     He smiled. "Of course. I trust that you will have made your decision before I leave today."

    The tone of his voice made it quite clear that he was expecting her to say "yes." She only nodded, not wanting any of her words to be taken the wrong way.

    "Is there anything else that you would like to discuss today before we go forward?"

    It was a good opening for what she wanted to say. "Yes, there is. I have a small request that involves the wedding."

    "And that request would be..." He didn't seem as angry as he had in the past, and that gave Crystal confidence to go forward.

    "It's about the guest list for the wedding. I don't mind the people who will already be attending, but I noticed there was one crucial absence: Luna, my daughter."

    "Your daughter." His voice was flat as he spoke to her.

    "I know that you haven't been too fond of having Luna play a role in our lives as of yet. But there's no way that I can let the most important occasion of my life go by without having her there. I promise that Medusa will make all the arrangements, and she will also make sure Pietro knows the invitation is not being extended to him. You won't have to speak or interact with her in any way. Just this one small thing, and I swear I won't ask for anything else." Saying the last part left a bitter taste in Crystal's mouth. But based on what she had seen from Ronan so far, she had to pacify him enough to make him willing to consider what she wanted. By this time she had given up on the idea that she was ever going to be able to get Ronan to allow Luna in their lives. (With her having to move so far away, she might have not pushed the issue even if she thought he might listen to her. Luna deserved to be able to have Pietro and all the rest of her family in her life, not to be as isolated as Crystal was going to be.)

    "And how will I know that you have not been talking with that man behind my back if you do so? You have deceived me in the past, Crystal. For all I know you are still speaking with him on a regular basis."

    There was clear anger in Ronan's voice, but the part that left Crystal feeling most on edge was the fact he was not raising his voice as he spoke. It reflected a level of control that made her wonder how much of his previous bursts of rage had been the result of intense emotion. "You can speak to Medusa. She'll tell you I haven't been talking to anyone." Her sister had actually told her that she should leave her rooms more often than she was, but Crystal had no desire to really see anyone. "And even if I wanted to talk to Pietro, I couldn't do so after you destroyed my phone, could I?" The last part came out of her mouth without any thought.

    "Ah, yes. There is no way your sister would ever conceal something that might make me think less of you. It's not like she needs this alliance to go forward. After all, she was so quick to punish you for your previous infraction."

    "She knew that I was sorry for having done what I did. What could she have done to punish me, anyway?" Crystal could tell her own voice was starting to be raised, and she shifted gears back to her original idea. "And none of this has anything to do with Luna being at our wedding. I've agreed to everything else that has been put before me. Why can't I just have this one thing?"

    His face was beginning to show lines of anger. "Because I have made it perfectly clear that I want nothing to do with the spawn of your previous lover. Is the reason that you want her here so badly because she's going to bring information to you about when you can meet up with that man again? Or perhaps seeing her reminds you of the times you spent with him? How his hands traveled all over your body, of the nights you spent together?" By now his voice was starting to become louder.

    "You're mad! I want Luna here because she is my child, and I love her more than you could possibly understand! And what I may have had with Pietro is in the past now! I have already agreed to marry you and go live among your people! Isn't that enough for anyone to have to give?"

    He stood up. "And what about what I have given? If I wished I could take you back to my home right now instead of waiting until a ceremony has been performed. I could have asked you to complete a thousand acts of contrition before I let your misdeeds slide. Do not think that I am unaware of what you did in your previous marriage, Crystal. You betrayed your spouse once before. I know that you would have no problem doing so again."

    She felt insulted, and also got to her feet. "You know nothing about what happened then! Don't throw the mistakes I've made back in my face while keeping me from my child! Regardless of what I may have done before, Luna has no part in it! Keeping her away is only punishing her, and she already thinks that I no longer love her because we can't live together any more! For her sake, please allow this one favor!"

    "No." His voice was cold. "I do not care if that man's child feels you no longer love her. Once you have had my children then you will be able to forget about that past mistake and go forward with your new life as my wife."

    "I will never forget Luna, and I will never stop loving her."

    "You will love and honor me, and no others will have a place in your heart."

    Crystal was by now determined not to give in. "If Luna cannot be there, then I will not go forward with the marriage at all."

    Ronan's laughter filled the room. "And do you really think that you will be allowed to back out of this deal? My dear Crystal, there is no way to get around the fact you will be marrying me, and you will have to live under my rules."

    "And what of my desires? Do they carry no weight here?"

    He closed the gap between them, and was only a few inches away from her face. "Don't make me laugh. You have chosen to consort in the past with so many lesser beings that you should be grateful I am willing to go through with this at all."

    Her temper was flaring in full by now. "If I am going to be your wife, then you need to treat me with some respect! All that I am asking for is to be with my child! Is that really too much of a favor to grant?"

    There was a change in Ronan. His eyes seemed to grow darker and he answered her question with a "You have done nothing to deserve me granting you any kind of favor."

    Crystal was starting to feel like she was trapped. She tried to make a move to get away from Ronan, but he reached out and grabbed her arms tightly. She wondered what would happen if she screamed.

    His hands firmly holding on to her, the next words came out in a low tone. "I think that I've been going about this the wrong way. Perhaps..." he let the words trail off, and then went on as if he hadn't stopped "...I shouldn't have to wait for the wedding night."

    The meaning of what he was saying didn't fully sink in for Crystal until she felt one of Ronan's hands pulling on her clothing. Panic raced through her. She couldn't pull away, he was too strong, and Crystal responded in the only way she could think. The ground shook under them, and a trail of flame shot up his leg as she shouted "Get _away_ from me!"

    The desired effect was achieved. Ronan stumbled away from her, struggling to extinguish the fire that was trying to spread. Crystal made sure as soon as his hands were gone that she retreated to the other side of the room. He looked at her with an expression of utter hate in his eyes. "You _bitch!_ How _dare_ you?!"

    "I dare?" How could he go and say something like that after what just happened? "You... You tried to..." She couldn't even gasp out the word, not quite able to accept what had nearly happened to her.

    "I was trying to be your husband. Can you deny me that?"

    Crystal wanted to scream at the top of her lungs _yes!_ She could recall the time just after she and Pietro had been wed, how she had been nervous about what was going to happen. Their first time as husband and wife had been careful and slow, both being reluctant to go and touch the other. Neither one had any experience in that arena (a fact that many who knew her found hard to believe) and she knew that on her part there had been the fear of doing something wrong. Imagining Pietro going and grabbing her like that was impossible. "Don't come near me."

    "Oh, you'll pay for this. You will regret that you ever challenged me."

    "If you think that you will ever get a chance to come near me again then you're wrong." Crystal knew that her voice was trembling.

    "You may be surprised about that." With a final angry glance at her, Ronan left.

    Crystal walked over to her bed and sank down on it, shaking violently. "He was going to... He tried..." It still felt impossible to believe that something so horrifying had happened to her in her own home.

    There was a sound of someone coming over to her, and for a moment she thought that Ronan had returned to attack her again. But when a familiar head poked itself into her lap, she realized it was just Lockjaw.

    Grateful for his presence, she threw her arms around him and began to repeat to herself "I can't do this. I can't do this." The signs of what sort of man Ronan was had been clear since the beginning, but Crystal had chosen to deny them until that was no longer an option.

    She had to go and talk with Medusa about what had happened. While her sister might feel some regret for the loss of the alliance, once she knew what he had tried to do to her she would certainly agree that the wedding should not take place. And then Luna would be able to come back home, and Crystal could catch up with the Avengers...

    But for right now she just buried her head in Lockjaw's shoulder, trying to make her heart stop racing.

 

* * *

 

    Pietro was pacing around, waiting for Wanda to come and see him. She'd answered his message that morning. "Sorry I couldn't get back to you sooner, but I was pretty busy yesterday. Don't explain what's going on yet, okay? I'm planning on coming to see you today, and you can tell me everything then."

    His twin had always had a sense for knowing when something was troubling him. Pietro was glad that she was coming over to discuss this in person, because he had no idea how he could explain his fears over the phone.

    Wanda arrived just as he was planning on calling and asking when she would be there. "Pietro, what's the matter? I know this has to be something serious, or you would have just explained everything to me when I called this morning."

    "It's Crystal. I believe that she's in danger."

    "What kind of danger are we talking about? Does this have anything to do with her marriage?"

    "Yes." He was relieved that Wanda seemed to be listening to him. "A few days ago, Crystal called wanting to speak with Luna, like she had been doing a few times a week. They never got a chance to speak, since Luna still doesn't want to talk with her mother." Pietro wondered why he was adding in little details like that instead of just going and telling the story. "When we've spoken during those times, she would normally want to know things about how things are going at the mansion and other Avengers news. So we always talked for a little bit. But the last time, I heard someone yelling at her in the background about who was on the phone. I'm almost certain that it was Ronan, and I know that he didn't want Crystal to come and help us out during the whole mess with Robert because she might run into me there. And I am worried about what that kind of behavior means for Crystal's future well-being."

    Wanda let the words sink in before speaking. "Have you been worried about her before, or was it just this incident that made think there was trouble ahead?"

    "I started to feel uneasy after she told me that Luna had to come and live with me because Ronan did not want to have her around. But I was afraid to say anything because I didn't know if my being concerned was just because I was feeling jealous of Crystal having someone new in her life." Pietro still didn't know if his feelings were entirely based on worry for Crystal's welfare, or if they were coming from the selfish part of him that he hated to admit was there.

    "Has anyone else spoken with Crystal besides you? I would guess that Jan would have gotten in touch with her back when she was getting a team together."

    "Both Jan and Steve have said they were talking to her about coming to help us out. But they also both said that she told them that she couldn't come, although I don't know if any reason was given then."

    She asked "Have you tried to get in touch with Crystal since then?"

    "I called her a day after we last spoke, but there was no answer. And the only time since then anyone has reached out to Luna it was Medusa who made the call." Luna no longer showing even a hint of wanting to speak to her mother due to that call. She was upset that Crystal didn't even seem to be trying to reach out to her any longer. And Pietro didn't want to say that she may not have been able to do so without knowing for sure it was true.

    "What with my own opinion of Ronan, it's somewhat hard for me to say that your fears are well-founded or not." Wanda thought for a moment before asking "How did Crystal sound when she was calling you?"

    "She was much quieter than she normally is. I think that she was trying to make sure that no one knew she was speaking to me. When she first told me I was going to have to take Luna for a while, she said that Ronan didn't like how much we talked to each other."

    Her eyes grew wider. "That doesn't sound very good. I think that ordering Crystal to send her child away is the thing that I find the most troubling. I can't really comprehend why having someone else's child around would be so threatening that you would say the marriage was off unless they were gone. Unless you didn't want even the slightest intrusion into your relationship, and that would mean..."

    "That you wanted to control them in some way. That's what I'm afraid of."

    She started to pace around. "The biggest problem here is the personal connection that we both have to Crystal. I can guess what would happen if you were to try and raise any concerns, and if I did the same people would just say that I was only doing so because of my relationship with you. Do you think that any of the other Avengers could try and speak with either Medusa or Crystal?"

    "If anyone were to do that, it would have to be either Jan or Dane. They're the ones she was closest to. But I don't think having Dane reach out would be a good idea. Look at how Ronan reacted to her speaking to me, and there's no way that you could think we have any serious relationship." It still hurt Pietro to say that. He had known for a long time that once he'd given away his heart, it wasn't going to be taken back at any point soon. That was why he never even entertained the idea of trying to start something with another - it was only going to end in failure.

    "Then let me talk to Jan. I'll see if she has any ideas."

    Only being able to hear one side of a conversation is always difficult. Pietro found it even worse this time around due to his impatience with not being able to do anything to help out Crystal. He tried to strain his ears to hear Jan's voice.

    He did get something. "And what with how things have gone for me, I know the signs, and I just didn't feel like I could say anything because..." The rest was too quiet to hear.

    "So you don't think that this is just jealousy, then?"

    What Jan said to Wanda couldn't be heard, but the nodding his twin was now doing gave him an idea of what might be coming out of her mouth.

    "Do you think it might be possible to get Crystal to some kind of Avengers' thing if you made a promise Pietro wouldn't be there? Then you could talk to her privately?"

    He hoped there would be some kind of affirmative answer, but the way Wanda's face fell told him all he needed to know about what the answer was.

    "So do you have any ideas for what we could do to try and help out Crystal?" This question clearly got a better answer than the ones before, as Wanda went on to say "I didn't think about that. Do you have her number?" A laugh. "Yes, I know. It was silly to even ask, right. Let me get something to write that down." She proceeded to get a pen and began to jot down some numbers. "Alright. Thank you, Jan. I hope that this works out for us."

    Pietro jumped in the moment Wanda ended the call. "What did she say? What was her idea?"

    "Well, Jan agrees with you that Crystal's potentially in trouble, but she doesn't feel like she knows her well enough to reach out. What she did suggest was to go and contact Sue Richards. She's probably one of the few people who could go and get in touch with Crystal without it seeming out of place. If then she could get her to come and visit, or just stay in touch, then we'd be able to keep an eye on the situation."

    It wasn't something that he would have thought of. "Jan did give you Sue's number, right?"

    "Yes. But I think that it would be better for you to call her instead of me."

    He blinked. "Is there a reason for that?"

    "Because you're the one who's most concerned about what's happening. Also, you were the one who was speaking to Crystal when Ronan stepped in. I wouldn't be able to tell Sue the story as well as you could."

    He still didn't feel completely comfortable with doing this. "I really don't think I know Sue well enough to talk to her about something like this."

    "You may not know Sue, but you both know Crystal. I know that she's going to want to do something just as much as you do, and with her not having ties to you it might work out better than Jan talking to her."

    He had known from the start that he was going to end up making the call. Wanda had a way about her that could be very forceful if she chose, and truthfully Pietro was so desperate to find someone to help that he would have spoken to anyone. "I'll do it, then."

    Even with agreeing to make the call, Pietro still didn't know how he was going to be received. He was honest enough with himself to admit he wasn't normally the best person to get along with. Sue was likely to greet him with a certain degree of hostility, and he feared that if that was the case then it would be much harder to make his argument that Crystal was in danger. Additionally, they barely knew each other.

    So when he first heard Sue's voice, he rushed to get his words out. "Sue? This is Pietro Maximoff."

    "Pietro? I thought I recognized your voice. What's going on?"

     Her reaction made the rest a lot easier to say. "This may seem like a bit of a strange question, but have you heard anything from Crystal lately?"

    "No, unfortunately. I didn't even get to hear from her that she was getting married again. I only found out second-hand. It doesn't seem like a good omen to me for how things are going to turn out. I mean, wouldn't you want to tell one of your close friends as soon as possible if you were going to make such a big change in your life?"

    For his own part, Pietro could only think about how he had wanted to make sure his sister knew about the planned marriage. "But you haven't heard anything else? Did someone at least tell you about Luna?"

    Sue sounded very surprised. "No, nothing. What about Luna? Did something happen to her?"

    "Ronan told Crystal that he wasn't going to go through with the marriage as long as Luna was living with her. She's been staying with me for a while now. They haven't spoken since she left. There was a period of time when Crystal was trying to call her, but that ended recently. And that's one of the reasons that I'm calling."

    "God." Sue didn't appear to be pleased. "I had no idea. I was a bit worried before, but now I'm really concerned. Crystal loves Luna so much. Why on earth would Medusa and Black Bolt allow that?"

    "The whole reason for this marriage is the formation of an alliance between the Kree and Inhumans. I think that because of that they're more willing to overlook things. And when I last spoke with Crystal, Ronan interrupted us and asked who was on the phone. Crystal sounded so frightened when she hung up, and he was so angry. I'm afraid... that he might hurt her." Pietro still didn't know if he was going to be taken seriously when he voiced his concerns.

    "From what I've heard, I think that you're right. I wonder if it would be possible for me to get Crystal to come here at some point? I can just make it sound like a girls weekend before she ends up tying the knot. It might seem less threatening to Ronan if I'm the one bringing it up. I also don't have any real ties to you, so hopefully he won't think the reason for me inviting her is to have her meet with you. I bet that if I can get Crystal alone she'll talk to me about what might be going on there."

    "And what will you do if she does tell you something's wrong?"

    Sue stated "I'll probably go and talk with Medusa and tell her that Crystal is being put into danger as a result of the marriage. If I know her as well as I think I do, then she'll put an end to things right then and there."

    Pietro didn't have Sue's confidence. He felt that if Medusa was really focused on the well-being of her sister first and foremost then she would have stopped things once the issue with Luna came up. But who knew? "Then I hope you can get her to come. And if you do, would you mind if I were to bring Luna over for a visit as well?"

    "I'm not sure if that would be a good idea. Luna's probably not all that eager to talk to her mother, and I don't want to take any chances if Crystal doesn't feel like she can open up to me. Maybe, if Luna's willing, then you could have Wanda bring her over. By the way, when you see her next tell her that I'm so happy about how things turned out with her family. Nobody could have seen that one coming."

    "Then let me know as soon as you can." He ended the call and looked towards his sister. "Sue says she's going to try and get Crystal to come for a visit before the wedding. Hopefully then she can get her to open up about how things are really going with Ronan."

    Wanda nodded. "Now let's go and do something to take your mind off things. What do you say we go and get lunch?"

    "That's fine. I'll just go and get Luna and we can go." His daughter may not have specifically been included in the invitation, but since there was no one else who could look after her he had no plans to leave her behind. It wasn't like his sister wanted to talk about anything too personal to share with another. "How did your meeting with Stephen go?"

     Her face fell. "He's... troubled. More than I expected him to be. But I'm going to see if I can help him out somewhat."

    "I can tell you that I know you will try your hardest." It may not have been enough of a consolation for Wanda, but it was the best Pietro felt he could do.

    He went to get Luna, hoping that they had found a solution to Crystal's problems.

 

* * *

 

    "I can't believe it. That's just not like her."

    "Unfortunately, as you can see, it is very much what happened." Ronan made sure to show the spot where Crystal's flames had marked his clothing. "I knew that she was not going to be happy when I said it would be better to not have Luna come to our wedding, but a reaction like this came as a shock to me as well."

    He had taken a few moments to collect himself before going and seeking out Medusa. Ronan still had to keep a lid on his anger as he thought about what had happened. That bitch! How dare she think she had the right to deny him anything! If he had been able to claim her the fight might have gone out of her.

    But Ronan also knew he needed to get his own story out about what happened before Crystal was able to do so as well. Even though he knew that she was his to do with as he pleased, he still wasn't sure that the Inhumans would see it that way.

     So he told a partial truth - about how things had flared up when Crystal wanted to talk about having Luna attend their wedding, and that she had gone and attacked him without warning. And wasn't that mostly true? After all, she should have just given in when he decided to make her his for the first time. It wasn't like he wouldn't ever be bedding her. And now he knew that things were not going to be fun for Crystal when it did happen.

     Medusa was shaking her head. "I know that Crystal's not been too happy about how things have been going, but it still baffles me that she would lash out like this."

    "I suspect part of the problem is how things are still so uncertain for her. Perhaps she thinks that by behaving in such a way she might be able to put an end to the match."

    She looked like she was buying his words. "That does seem like a possibility. The question now is what should be done to resolve this. I can't have Crystal behaving so childishly again."

    "I could speak with her on what she has done." The idea of being able to go back and tell her that her sister was never going to believe her filled Ronan with pleasure. It was a good thing he'd gone and broken her phone, or else she might be going and speaking to that man she had married. Did she think he was a fool? Crystal had already betrayed one man, why wouldn't she do it again? What other reason could she have for wanting to speak with him so often?

    "No, I should be the one to talk to her. Crystal's most likely going to be too upset to hear you out right now."

    He was disappointed, but managed to conceal it. "Perhaps it might be a good idea to advance the date for the marriage. Once the ceremony is done, she'll have to accept the way things are." And once she was in his home there was going to be no need to worry about what might happen if someone heard her screaming.

    Medusa looked to be intrigued by the idea. "That might be what we'll have to do. If Crystal isn't remorseful for how she treated you, then I'm going to go ahead and have the wedding much sooner."

    Ronan nodded his approval, not daring to speak and let some of the excitement he was feeling leak into his voice. _Soon, Crystal. Soon you'll learn why going against me is a very bad idea..._

 


	5. Dream Brother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Simon and Vision begin to repair their relationship, and Anna starts to take steps towards a new life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the lateness of this chapter, but work has been knocking me on my feet lately. I hope the next chapter comes faster.

    Vision had chosen the location for his meeting with Simon based on the fact there were jazz performances held there on a regular basis. It meant that there was something for them to fall back on if they were unable to break through the barriers that had blocked them in the past.

    For his own part, Vision wished that he hadn't let things go this far. At some point he should have just tried to repair his broken family. He'd spent too long without his wife and children, but the only thing keeping him from his brother was his own sense of pride. Most might have said that anger was the dominate emotion there, but he knew himself well enough to admit the truth.

    Simon. His brother, who was so much like him. They had been connected from the moment of Vision's birth, and looking back on the time they had been so close it felt even more wrong that they had spent so many years apart. He couldn't say that it hadn't been a mutual thing in creating the space between them. Simon had also had the chance to reach out and chose not to do so. But Vision refused to spend time waiting for him to make the first move. That was part of the reason everything had gone on so long. The second major reason was because a part of him felt like Simon was responsible for what had happened to Billy and Tommy. If he had agreed to help out Vision, then might he have been able to prevent Master Pandemonium from attacking his children?

    He could now see Simon slowly making his way into the restaurant. He clearly wasn't feeling all that comfortable to be here, and he was looking around to see where his brother was sitting. Vision raised his hand, and that caused Simon to walk in his direction.

    He sat down, and for a few minutes neither one spoke or looked at each other. Vision knew that he had to be the one to first break the silence. "I am glad that you were able to come today, Simon."

    "Yeah. I'm still a little surprised that you asked me to come."

    "What with all of the events that have transpired recently, I didn't want to leave all of the wounds that existed between us open. Too much can happen to people before they can really talk."

    "I know." He folded his hands on the table. "I'm just not sure if there's anything I can say that will make things better. There's just so many things that I have to make up for, and where can I possibly begin?"

    Wanting to make this a little easier, he asked "What would be the biggest thing, in your opinion?"

    "No contest. How I ruined things between you and Wanda. I knew perfectly well when I was gong after her the last time that she wasn't completely over you, and I still kept on seeing her. When you blew up at me about how I didn't understand what was going on in your head that time, I deep down knew that I deserved it. If I hadn't stepped in, maybe you guys would have figured things out sooner." Simon shook his head as he spoke.

    "I would have to remind you that you don't control what Wanda chooses to do. She wanted to try and seek out a relationship with you, and I was not giving her any indications at the time that I might possess any feelings for her. You were responsible only for being willing to reach out to Wanda. My own behavior towards her at the time was far more worthy of criticism than yours." Vision was still angry with himself for still having pushed his wife away even when he both knew how much Wanda would do to keep him safe and also that he was still capable of having those feelings towards her.

    Simon blinked. "I hadn't thought of it that way. I guess that could be the case. But that doesn't make it right that I was able to do it in the first place. What does it tell you about me that one of the reasons I wasn't willing to let them copy my brain to help you was due to thinking that if I didn't it would give me a chance to go after my sister-in-law?"

     "The Sentry seemed to imply when I spoke with him last that he was responsible for you behaving in such a manner. Did he not make you forget about talking to Mother that one time?"

    "He may have, but I was the one who didn't want to do it in the first place. Part of the reason for me not agreeing was fear over what might happen to me." This was the first time that Vision had heard anything about this. "Yeah, I knew that nothing had really happened to me the first time around, but I kept telling myself that anything could change. I don't know how much of that worry was just a cover for my wanting to see if I had a chance with Wanda. I'm guessing at least part of it, but I don't know for sure. Mom was able to bring me to my senses at one point - but I still can't believe that it was only because the Sentry stepped in that I ended up not doing it. I could have called Hank after talking to her and done what I should right away. It should tell you something about me that I didn't."

    It did hurt to hear his brother speaking so negatively about himself. "But when was it that you spoke with Mother? If it was late enough then Hank might not have even been awake still." Vision wasn't certain if Hank would have actually been asleep (although Simon might have thought he was), since for as long as he had known the man he had suffered from insomnia many nights. While it had just been a part of his personality at first Vision had soon learned that such prolonged sleep disturbances were a sign of bipolar disorder.

     "It was pretty late in Mom's time, but not so much that I couldn't have spoken to Hank. We might not have been able to do anything that day but I also would have had someone else who could get back to me afterwards. Mom couldn't always keep up with how things are going, and by the time she asked me about our talk things with Wanda had gone to hell already."

    "But you can't go and think about how things might have gone. Once your memory was erased, you lost the chance to make any other decisions. Maybe you still would have refused to help me. However, you never really had the chance to either accept or refuse." Vision still did not know if being logical was going to help Simon understand how he felt about what had happened now, yet trying to be so seemed to be the only real option.

    "Okay. I can understand where you are coming from. But I know my own mind. There were times that I thought about what might happen in order for me to see if I could have a relationship with Wanda." Simon was fidgeting as he spoke. "I can accept the Sentry might have made me going forward an impossible option. But he wasn't just creating ideas in my head. They had been there before. Even if he just blocked my memories and brought those thoughts to the front of my mind, he was working with what was already there. I'm not going to let the people I love let me off the hook so easily this time."

    "This time? What was the other time?" He strongly suspected what the time in question was when Simon had been arrested although there could have been something else that had occurred in the past Vision was yet to know about.

    Simon gave an exasperated sigh. "Come on Vision. You can probably guess. When I was caught for embezzlement. Mom came to see me right afterwards, and she asked me 'Simon, this can't be true, can it?' And then I said to her..." his voice trailed off before continuing. "...I said 'Oh, Mom, you know what kind of person I am.' Then she asked me if it was Eric, and I just nodded. I told myself that it was true, since he did go and suggest to me I find other ways of getting the money I needed to keep the company afloat. He may have given me a bit of the idea, but I was willing to do pretty much anything by then. I wouldn't be surprised if I had ended up coming to a similar conclusion without his input. And what can I say? That I was willing to let my mother put all the blame on my sick brother just so I could still seem like the good child in her eyes?"

    It was all a lot to take in. "You did admit to your failing in the end."

    He waved his hand. "I'm not going to deny that I was able to fess up to the truth. I always thought of that as being something that really showed I could change and be a better person. And I had it for a while. I had a family and friends, and could say I had become a hero. I hate thinking about how my being selfish helped to tear all of that apart."

    A thought occurred to Vision. "This may sound unusual, but I am glad you were able to admit to that. One of the things that kept me from trying to reach out to you first was due to you not seeming to believe that you had done anything wrong in regards to what happened between me and Wanda. I will be honest and say that my own pride played an even more important role in keeping us apart. I did not want to deal with you until you reached out to me first."

    Simon laughed. "We've been a pair of fools, haven't we, brother? All it might have taken was one of us being willing to talk to each other, but neither one would do it until the other acted first."

    "I understand that now. I wish it had not taken so much suffering on all of our behalves for it to be so." Vision added "I am grateful both that you went to talk with Mother and met up with Philip and Magdalene. If you hadn't, then how long might it have been before we were able to recognize where the true threat to the team lay?"

    "Sometimes I think about that and realize that I don't want to know. How is Wanda feeling now, by the way?"

    "She is still not open to the idea of doing anything involving the Avengers, but I would say that she is feeling more open towards talking to individual team members. Bonita in particular has become quite close to her, and I was very glad to hear that when the next team gets put together Firebird will be one of the members."

    "That's good to hear. I've seen Bonita a couple of times since the whole mess ended. I never would have thought of having us work to repair the mansion, and I can't imagine that I would have really talked with some of the people I've worked with. The other day I had a great conversation with Walter about a trip he took with Diane not that long ago. And while I did know Monica before this, I don't think I've ever really gotten a chance to speak with her about things outside of missions." Simon asked "Do you think that you might want to come help us out at some point?"

    He had thought about it, but the answer in the end remained the same. "No. While I might be able to spend some time with the other Avengers, I cannot forgive the team as a whole for what happened with Wanda. If I had been there I never would have allowed them to even think about putting the blame on her."

    "That's another reason why you're the better choice for her to make. I don't think I would have been able to go against the whole team like that." Simon went on to say "It reminds me a bit of when I asked Wanda if she would be interested in going out to California with me - to stay, not to visit."

    "Clearly she didn't go there. Did you ever get a reason why?"

    "At the time Wanda just said she needed time to think about it, and soon after that there was the whole invasion to deal with. When we were in that prison camp, that was when she pretty much told me the truth. She didn't feel like it would be the right thing to do, and realized that if she was really in love with me then she would have been more than happy to follow me wherever I go. Hearing that hurt, but it also slammed a door shut in my life. Wanda had told me that she didn't love me the way I might have wanted her to once, and if I'm being honest then I knew I wasn't feeling as happy as I thought I might be. We both admitted to each other that we only loved each other like friends do, not like lovers. Then I asked her if she still loved you. You can guess what her answer was."

    Vision felt guilty for not having made Wanda feel she could tell him that then. "I wish that I had been able to speak with her about that at the time. I behaved terribly towards her after I was taken apart, and rebuffed all of her efforts to reconnect with me."

    Simon smiled. "Well, I can say that Wanda never held it against you. She said that it was good if you'd moved on, and believe me it took all I had to not start laughing and saying that what you were doing was not classified under moving on in my books."

    "I know that I did try a bit more to be civil after the Kang incident. It might have been seeing how things could end up turning on a dime and be so wrong. But two things helped me to get over my fears: the Red Zone incident and last Christmas."

    "Afraid... what was it that frightened you the most about everything?"

    Thus far Vision's talk with Simon had been working out well. The discomfort he had expected was mostly gone, and they could have been any pair of siblings sitting down and getting caught up. "Losing what I loved again. I knew from the start of our relationship that I would go on after Wanda was no more, but losing my boys was the first time I had to deal with that pain."

    "It's funny to say, but I think that the first time I lost someone that I missed was Eric all those years ago. My dad died before then - and he's stayed that way, thank God. But I never missed him. We were all better off with him gone. Eric... he did terrible things, I'll acknowledge that. And he's my brother, even as sick as he is. I can still remember the times we would play together or talk about things going on. Does that sound strange to you?"

    It was another connection between the two of them. "I of all people know what it is like to have no real feelings towards one's father. Nothing you said strikes me as being wrong, Simon. I must also say that I did feel sorrow when I thought that you were lost to me. I wish that I had been able to express that to you upon your return."

    "You were dealing with quite a lot at the time. With what was going on, who would expect you to go and talk to me normally?"

    "You have not been willing to let your own failings be discounted. Please grant me the same mercy." Simon was not the only one at fault here, and Vision was determined not to forget that.

    "I can accept that you were wrong, but I also want to move beyond that. We've both made mistakes with each other. Now we're trying to change that. I don't want there to be hate between us anymore, Vizh."

    The use of his nickname felt like the shattering of a barrier between them. "On my side I can say that no such feeling exists any longer."

    "Then let me say that lack of feeling is mutual." The moment of silence between them didn't seem to come from anything other than a desire to let the words sink in. "So how is everything going with my nephews?"

    "It has been easier for them than it has been for me. Did you know that Tommy came to see me while I was in that warehouse? He asked where I was, and called me Daddy. I thought it had to be some kind of trick. The Sentry, he was also able to come and speak with me then." He had no idea why he had shared that last part. "There are times when I am afraid that my boys will be gone again, and this time I will never find them. And I still feel guilty about how I acted towards Billy and Tommy after I lost my emotions. I can remember how frightened they were, and I didn't see anything wrong with that." He tried to keep his voice steady. Not even Wanda knew about Vision's guilt because of what had happened then. Sharing his guilt with Simon felt like the right thing to do.

    "Do Billy and Tommy even remember what happened?"

    "They can recall a bit about what happened when Master Pandemonium attacked, but I have not heard anything about their memories of me then. I have not wanted to ask them. What if by doing so I make them remember how I cared nothing at all for my own sons?"

    "Look, Vision. Essentially you suffered some kind of major brain injury that left you unable to express your feelings. Yeah, I don't doubt that Billy and Tommy were frightened then - but you aren't like that _now._ And that's the part that's going to mean the most to them. If you do end up having to explain things to them, say that you had been hurt and weren't thinking clearly."

    He was uncertain if those words would make a difference in the event that they needed to be spoken, yet Simon's kindness came through in them. "I will try to remember that." Vision then asked a question he had been thinking about since the official dissolution of the new team. "I have heard that there are going to be some open spots on the Avengers' roster. Are you planning on joining them?"

    A shake of his head. "No. It just doesn't feel like the right choice for me right now. I'm liking working with everyone on the mansion construction, but when I've asked myself if I want to keep on being here the answer is no. I'm definitely sticking around until we're done, and after that I'm headed back out to California." Simon said "I doubt that I even need to ask you about this, but are you going to be interested in joining us at some point?"

    "For repairs, or for actually being part of the team? The answer would be the same in both cases. No. I still find the way the others acted in regards to Wanda to be unacceptable, and I do not wish to engage in any rash behaviors that I might be prone to doing n my state of mind."

     "Makes sense to me. I will say that people miss you."

    "I know that." It was now time to put forward his request. "Simon, both Mother and Wanda would like to have you come and have dinner with us at some point. Tommy and Billy have both said that they would like to meet their Uncle Simon, and I think that it would be a good thing for all of us to get together as a family."

    The grin on his face was so wide it almost seemed like it hurt. "Just tell me when it will be happening, and I swear I'll be there."

    "I'll ask Mother when she thinks the best time will be. Wanda's working on studying some things related to magic, and she's gone to see Stephen Strange about what she can learn." Vision almost mentioned the troubled state the man appeared to be in, but did not believe sharing such information would be helpful.

    "I'm glad to hear that Wanda's doing something she likes. I don't know how much longer all the construction is going to be, so I'm going to be out here for at least the foreseeable future." His brother looked him straight in the eyes for the first time since sitting down and said "I'll be looking forward to it."

    Vision made sure to keep his own gaze fixed on Simon and replied "As am I."

 

* * *

 

    Being confined to your home for an unknown length of time would be seen by most people as like a prison sentence. For Anna Altman, it couldn't have been more freeing.

    While in the past she had been able to go wherever she wanted, the freedom had been purely an illusion. Every time she was out in public, she was afraid that somehow people would know that she was a Skrull and fleeing her home planet with the son of Anelle and Mar-Vell in tow. Teddy and her had gotten by for years, even when she had discovered two children in their yard and had two more responsibilities on her shoulders.

    And then everything changed. When Bonita Juarez and Wanda Maximoff had arrived on her doorstep that night, it had set in motion a chain reaction that had not only reunited Billy and Tommy with their parents, but had also given Anna a chance to finally establish herself on Earth. When she had been pursued by one Robert Reynolds, it had brought her to the door of the Avengers. Tony Stark in particular had been very helpful - he had gotten in touch with some lawyers who were going to assist her in filing for refugee status, had given Anna a large check that had taken care of her financial worries for quite some time, and even made sure that her home wasn't left in disarray after Robert had gone on a rampage upon finding her gone.

    It had been shortly after Anna and Teddy had come back to their home when Tony had dropped in to give her an update on how things were going. "Sorry if I interrupted anything important, but I've just gotten back from speaking with your lawyers about the hearing we had today." Anna had not been present for that hearing, having been told that it wasn't essential for her to be there. "There's good news and bad news. The good news is that so far the government has agreed to our proposal of allowing you and Teddy to stay here while your case is being processed."

    "Then what's the bad news?" Not having to leave or be separated from Teddy was about as good as she had hoped for, so whatever Tony was going to say next couldn't be that bad.

    He gave a brief sigh and went on. "The bad news is that in order for us to be able to keep an eye on you two, you're going to have to stay here at all times. If you need food or anything else, you'll have to call me and I can arrange to have what you need brought to you. But if you don't agree to these terms, then you and Teddy are going to have to go stay in a detention center until the case is finished." Pausing to make sure Anna understood, Tony asked "Is that alright with you?"

    "As long as somebody can get us food and Teddy and I stay together, it should be fine. I may have been able to physically go places before, but I was always living in fear. Is it okay if I have people come to see me? Vision told me he was going to get all of Billy and Tommy's things that were here in a little while, and Teddy really wants to see them again."

    "That's okay. The important part is the team being able to keep an eye on you, and having visitors isn't going to make a difference in that. Oh, and I've got a surprise coming for Teddy in a few days."

    The surprise had turned out to be a jungle gym, which was perfect to keep him entertained while they couldn't go to the park or anywhere else. The restrictions had disappointed Teddy, leading to him asking "Mommy, why can't we go anywhere?"

    "Do you remember what we talked about when we were staying with the Avengers, about how we're going to tell the people here how we can't go back home? Well, until they can listen to us about why we can't go home they need to keep an eye on us. So we have to stay home for now. But we can still have people come and see us. I know that Billy and Tommy are going to come visit really soon, and so is Mrs. Kaplan. I'm sorry that we can't go places right now, but before too long we'll be able to do all kinds of things we couldn't do before. How does that sound?"

    Teddy didn't look to be all that happy with the news, but he said "So we can go places real soon?"

    "Not really soon, but before you know it."

    It had helped to have his friends come over to play with him. Anna watched the three of them playing, hoping that before too long she was going to be able to find more friends for Teddy to get to know.

    But all of that depended on the hearing for asylum. And today was the first time Anna was going to meet with her lawyers. She had put together some snacks to serve, hoping that she could make as good an impression as possible with them. Tony had told her that she had nothing to worry about, that they were both very professional, yet all the years of being isolated did little to make her feel comfortable.

    "Who's coming over, Mommy? Is it Ms. Danvers again?" Last weekend they had been visited by Carol Danvers, who not only brought them the supplies they needed but also was able to tell Teddy a great deal of stories about his father. Anna for her part hadn't known Mar-Vell, not even via stories Anelle would tell.

    She'd asked her once shortly after she came to help with Teddy what had happened between them and had been given the simple words of "We met in war. Then there was peace, but that peace did not extend to us giving our hearts to each other. I wish he had..." And that was the final word on that.

    Answering Teddy, Anna said "Not today. The people who are coming over are our lawyers. They're going to help us when we go to court and tell everyone why have to stay here. It's not going to be something you're going to be interested in, so you don't have to stick around while we talk, okay?"

    Teddy nodded. Anna had not told him that there was any uncertainty about them being accepted, a thought that crossed her mind from time to time. Both Tony and Jen had said that they were very likely to gain the status they sought, but Anna hadn't gotten by on Earth this long without maintaining a certain level of suspicion.

    The doorbell rang. Anna took a deep breath before answering.

    A man and a woman were standing on her doorstep. The woman spoke first, saying "Hello. I'm Caroline Washington, and this is Andrew Baxter. It's very nice to meet you, Mrs. Altman."

    "Thank you. Why don't you come in and have a seat?"

    They did, and Andrew commented on the food that was set out. "Thank you, but you didn't need to go to all this trouble."

    "I just thought it might help us to feel a little more at ease with each other." Anna was wringing her hands as she spoke.

    Caroline smiled at her in a way that took some of the tension from her body. "I can understand how nerve-wracking this all is going to be, especially since you've been living here for so long already. But me and Andrew have handled plenty of cases just like yours in the past. I am very confident that we are going to be able to obtain the recourse you desire, especially with the Avengers supporting your case."

    Anna asked "What makes you think we're going to be successful?"

    "Besides the support that you have? There's the issue of what happened to Teddy's mother. You have said that she hasn't been in touch with you for over four years now, and before you left you knew that she was in danger. The lack of contact points toward a grim outcome, and it isn't too much of a stretch to then say that a similar fate would befall her child if he was not able to remain on Earth. And while you yourself may not be under the same manner of threat, I don't think that the enemies of Anelle are going to show you all that much mercy if you were to return."

    She had long known that there was going to be a threat of harm to her if she were ever to return home. Anna hadn't been anyone important before she had gotten the job of helping to take care of Teddy. Some of Anelle's foes had directed their attention to her, saying that it would be for the best if she were to step away from her new role. "Do you really want to cause trouble for yourself?" That had only backfired, as Anna had known that she didn't have anything to fall back on if she did leave. Reminding her that she had nothing to lose only served to strengthen her resolve in the end.

    No one had noticed Teddy standing there listening in until he said to Caroline "You're wrong."

    "I'm wrong? What is it I'm wrong about?"

    "You said my mommy hasn't talked to us for a long time. But that's not true. Mommy's here, and she always talks to me."

    Anna winced. She had thought that Teddy understood how she wasn't his actual mother, even though she had acted as such for years. Back in the tower she had said that she was his mother even if she hadn't given birth to him in order to maintain his affection for her. Since they had come back home Anna had started to tell Teddy as much as she could about the woman who really was his mother so he could be fully informed about what the truth was. "Teddy, we talked about this. Your mother is the person who gave birth to you, not me."

    "She's my mother, but you're my _mommy._ "

     Hoping that she wasn't going to start crying at the childish reasoning, Anna let Andrew be the one to speak first. "Hi, Teddy. I'm Mr. Baxter, and that's Mrs. Washington. Do you know why we're here?"

    "So Mommy and I can stay here for good."

    "That's right. And we also want to help so that your mommy become your real mommy, at least as far as the law is concerned. So we do have to talk about your mother a little bit, because people need to know why she can't take care of you anymore. Do you understand?"

    Teddy didn't seem to quite get the whole idea of how Anna was going to become his mother, but he didn't ask any other questions, instead nodding. She vowed to speak to him about what adoption meant after the lawyers were gone.

    Once Teddy had left the room, Anna apologized for the intrusion. "I'm sorry about that. I had no idea Teddy would come in like that."

    Caroline waved her hand. "I've got kids of my own. I know how things turn out. He heard us talking, and he wanted to know what was going on. Being confined like this isn't helping matters much, either."

    Andrew moved on to the business at hand. "The first thing that you are going to have to do is to pass your initial asylum interview. That's just going to be you going before an asylum officer and explaining why it is that you are at risk if you return to your home world."

    "How much am I going to be made to explain?" She knew that there were very few humans who knew of the other races that inhabited the galaxy. Anna thought that this was for the best, at least until there came a time when they could interact on a more regular basis. While humans were still working on the basics of space travel, it would be too much to deal with those who had already gotten beyond that.

    "The truth. But the officer who will be hearing your case has ties to SHIELD and is familiar with Skrulls. So you won't have to worry about anything there. When the time to go before a judge comes up we're going to have something prepared so that you can get a fair hearing. This will also give us a better chance of succeeding, as the officer is going to know a little more about the danger you're in than they would otherwise."

    Caroline said "There's also going to be a couple of forms that you will have to fill out. We'll be giving them to you before we leave today, and if you have any questions just give either me or Andrew a call."

    Anna then asked the question that was foremost on her mind. "What happens if the judge turns us down, or the officer doesn't think that I'm really in danger?"

    "I am confident that you're not going to have all that much trouble with the initial meeting. And until that's done, then I wouldn't worry about what might happen next." Caroline sounded confident that there would be no further problems, but Anna couldn't allow herself to be so optimistic.

    Andrew was the next to speak. "While we're here, I was wondering if we could also discuss your status as Teddy's caregiver. When his mother placed him in your care, she didn't relinquish any legal rights to him at the time, correct?"

    "No. It was all so sudden that Anelle just came to me and said that it wasn't safe and Teddy and I had to leave. That was why I didn't even have some fake documents to present - it was less than a day between getting the news we were leaving and actually going." Anna wasn't sure if it was a good idea to mention that she would have had forged documentation or not, but guessed that since it didn't actually end up happening it wouldn't matter.

    "Then that could be a problem in your hearing. Obviously you can't put any kind of legal claim as Teddy's guardian until the asylum case is finished, but in your hearing with the officer they're going to ask some questions about why you have to stay here with Teddy."

    "I've taken care of him for so long now," was all she could think to say.

    "You have, but a reasonable argument could be made for the Avengers offering him some kind of shelter, especially now that he's met them. Now I doubt that your hearing is going to be too badly effected if you aren't putting in some kind of claim to Teddy, but there's also his own welfare to consider. The best option for you right now would be to start working on the adoption papers prior to the hearing with the officer and then you can tell the judge you are planning to go forward as soon as you can with making your relationship official." Caroline reached into the bad she had brought with her and produced a handful of paperwork. "Shall we get started now?"

    Anna weighed her next words carefully. She both knew why having a legal bond to Teddy was important, and she had to admit to herself that she did want to adopt him. But it was also important to acknowledge her mixed feelings. "I'm not sure about that right now. I would love to make my role in Teddy's life official, but I also feel strange about going forward with this not knowing if Anelle is still alive. If she is, then I'm going to be taking her child from her. That feels so wrong to me that I can't work on the papers now."

    "With the length of time that has passed, legally Anelle could be considered to have abandoned her child. That would leave her without any rights to him even if she were to show up one day. But what do you think the chances are of her arriving on your doorstep one day?"

    "Almost zero, but then again I would have said the same thing about Billy and Tommy's mother around a month ago."

    Caroline said "Just try to look at this from a more practical perspective: You are currently planning on making your life here on Earth, and doing the same for Teddy. That's closing off the potential for any kind of life in your old home. Even if Anelle did come back for him some day, what makes you think Teddy would be able to establish himself there?"

    The reality of the situation they were now in seemed clear to Anna. "I understand. But I would like to see if someone could at least confirm my suspicions about Anelle's death before I start working on the papers. Is that going to be trouble?"

    "No, as long as you get started before the actual hearing with a judge. Who do you think could answer that question for you?"

    "Someone on the Avengers could, I'm sure. Tony's promised to come and get us whatever we need while we're confined to the house, so I can ask him when he comes by."

    "That should work out just fine. Just so that you remember, all of your visitors until the judicial hearing are going to have to be approved by us. If there's anyone not connected to the Avengers who you would like to see, just give us their name and we'll go from there." Andrew didn't appear to be happy with that last bit, although Anna understood why it was the case.

    "The only other people I might want to see would be Rebecca and Jeff." Rebecca had been delighted to finally hear from Anna, saying how worried she had been when she had dropped in for a visit only to find no one there.

    "I just knew that something had to be wrong, given that I had really met Billy and Tommy's mother only a little while before." Rebecca still didn't know the whole story, but the version she had now been given was much closer to the truth then what Anna had told her before. "I guess that whatever danger their parents were keeping them from must have caught up to you. I'm so glad to know you're safe now." Once again, the story of what happened with Robert hadn't been fully explained although the vast majority of the tale was told. She'd made a promise to come see Anna soon, but life had intervened and the only contact they had since then had been over the phone.

    "We'll see about them, then."

    The remainder of their conversation consisted of the various things that Anna would need to do before her first hearing, but what struck her the most was the feeling of hope that was growing in her heart.

    However her case ended up turning out, Anna somehow knew everything was going to be alright.

 


	6. Run Away

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crystal is forced to make a choice about her future.

_Run away, run away_

_Run away and save your life_

_Run away, run away_

_Run away if you want to survive_

    By the time Crystal was able to get herself together enough to speak about what had just happened between her and Ronan over an hour had passed. She was surprised at the passage of time, but hadn't felt ready to get up until her heart was no longer racing. Lockjaw had let her cling to him for the entire time, and she drew strength from the dog's presence. Standing up, she took a deep breath. It was time to speak to her sister.

    "Crystal? We need to talk."

    Medusa's voice was the last thing she'd thought she would hear. Turning to look in her direction, Crystal noticed the unhappy look on her face. She wondered who might have overheard something with Ronan. And if they had heard something, then why they hadn't stepped in.

    "Yes, we do." She waited for Medusa to speak first.

    She sounded more upset than Crystal had thought. "Crystal, is it true that you attacked Ronan a little while ago?"

    "Yes, but..."

    Her explanation was cut off. "Crystal, what in the world were you thinking? I know that not having Luna at the wedding is painful for you, but there's no reason for you to be so childish about it. What would have happened if you had seriously injured Ronan?"

    This was like something out of one of her worst nightmares. Crystal tried to force the words out of her mouth about what had really happened, but she was stopped by the sight of someone lingering in the doorway.

    It was Ronan, and he was smiling.

    She still had to say something, and managed to get out "It wasn't like that..."

    "Then what was it?" Medusa now looked even more annoyed with her than she had been before.

    "He wanted..." A sinister look from the doorway caused Crystal to be silent.

    "Yes, I know he didn't want Luna to come to the wedding. But do you think that even if you were to ask her to come, she would have shown up? She was still quite angry with you the last time I spoke to her. Do you really think that forcing her to be present for such an occasion is going to make things any better between you?"

    "No," and she felt her face grow red. She'd been foolish to think that Luna was going to want anything to do with her after all this. Crystal had lost her daughter, and now she was going to be losing her sister as well.

    Medusa still looked displeased. "What has gotten into you lately? You've been going behind our backs, and now you're physically lashing out at your future husband. Is it because you don't know what's going to happen next?"

 _No, it was because I knew what was going to happen,_ she thought. What she was dealing with now was terrible, but it was a far cry from what would have happened if she had been unable to fend Ronan off.

    Her silence was evidently making thing worse, as her sister now said in a very angry tone "What do you have to say for yourself?"

    Crystal knew what she wanted to say. _Why aren't you listening? Don't you understand how things got that way? Do you have any idea of what Ronan would have done if I hadn't stopped him?_ Yet none of that came out of her mouth. A horrible thought was growing in her mind, saying that if Medusa really was worried something was wrong she would have asked Crystal about what happened before just going to confront her. If she did tell the truth, then who was to say she would be believed? "I don't know. I'm sorry," was the best she could come out with.

    Her face softened. "I know that this is hard on you, and that you still don't feel comfortable around Ronan," (at which the man in question shot a glance at Crystal that made her shiver), "but throwing a tantrum about it isn't going to make things any better. When I spoke with him about what happened between the two of you, he had an interesting proposal."

    Her heart was starting to race as much as it had just after the attack. "What type of proposal would that be?"

    "That if so much of this tension is being caused by uncertainty over what the future holds, then it's for the best if we end that uncertainty. Ronan said that it might be in everyone's best interest if the date for the marriage was moved up so that it could happen sooner."

    The blood was rushing through her ears, and Crystal was afraid she was going to pass out. "No," she whispered.

    "Why not? What is the problem with the plan?"

    She nearly told Medusa everything. But before she could speak, Ronan made his way into the room and said "Medusa, have you finished speaking to Crystal about her abhorrent behavior yet? I still feel that it is possible for us to go forward with the alliance, but I also would like to be certain that there will be no repeat of said incident."

    "Oh, Ronan. I didn't realize you were still here. I was just explaining your idea to Crystal, but she doesn't seem to be accepting it." Medusa clearly hadn't realized he had been listening in to their conversation the entire time.

    "And why would that be? Does Crystal not understand that if I cannot have the wedding moved forward, then I will not be able to go through with the alliance after all." He moved closer to Crystal, and whispered "If you think that you will be getting away with what you did to me, you are wrong. Once I have you where no one can hear..."

    What would be the consequences of still saying no? The alliance meant so much to the Inhumans, and would Medusa tolerate anything that would jeopardize the deal? Even worse, how would Ronan take her answer? Unless she was told the marriage was off, then there was going to be a time when they would be alone once more. And Crystal knew that this time he would be ready for her powers.

    Medusa said "I still would like to hear what her answer is."

    All she could say was "How much sooner?"

    "I could have something put together in less than a week. It would not quite be the same kind of ceremony that we had made arrangements for, but all that really matters is the final outcome, don't you think?"

    Ronan's words were spoken in such a sickeningly sweet tone that Crystal wanted to be sick. Her sister couldn't be believing him, could she?

    "I doubt that Crystal is going to be too particular about the details of the event. She's not one for elaborate displays. Small will suit her just fine."

    "No," she whispered. She couldn't do this. "I can't."

    "You can't? Is there some problem with the date?"

    "Can we talk about this privately?" If she could only get Medusa alone, then maybe she could explain things better.

    Ronan looked Crystal directly in the eyes and responded with "If you have something to say about me, don't you think you should say it in my presence?"

    Her sister nodded. "If this was something that just concerned us, I would be more than happy to grant you privacy. But we're talking about your marriage. If you have an issue with Ronan, he should be able to hear about it."

    Crystal felt like the walls were closing in around her. Why couldn't Medusa understand that she could only talk without anyone else being there? Now she was afraid that even if she was able to get her alone and tell the truth about what happened, Medusa still wouldn't believe her. She wished that she had voiced her objections earlier. "I can't do this. I can't marry him."

    "Why?"

    She felt a tender area on her arm where Ronan had grabbed her, and was haunted by the revelation that once she was in his world there would be nothing to hold him back. "I..." But there was nothing else she could think to say that wouldn't result in more trouble.

    Medusa then said "Crystal, if you cannot give me a good reason to stay with our original plans, then I am going to move the wedding day farther up. Do you understand?"

    Yes, Crystal understood. She knew that there was nothing she could do to change her fate at this moment. And because her words meant nothing, she did not choose to say anything.

    Medusa was frowning. "Crystal, please give me the decency of a response."

    "I understand." It was the truth.

    "And before we go, I would like you to apologize to Ronan. Your behavior was far out of line."

    Her resolve was set firm. "I will not."

    "And why is that? Crystal, you perfectly well know that this alliance is of great value to our people. If you keep on being so stubborn, then all might be lost. It is time that you started thinking about the good of the Inhumans instead of just yourself."

    The good of her people. For her entire life, Crystal had first and foremost thought of what would be best for the Inhumans as a whole instead of what she wanted. And in doing so, she had lost her daughter, her marriage, and her position on the Avengers.

    She knew this could not stand any longer. "I'm sorry," she said in a manner that made clear she was not sorry in the slightest.

    Both Ronan and Medusa looked about as pleased as one would expect. Medusa gave a pointed look to her sister, and said "If there are any other troubles, then believe me when I say there will be consequences. Ronan, I must apologize on behalf of my people that such a thing happened to you."

    "Accepted. I know this was not your doing," was the answer given. Medusa left, and he turned to Crystal with a large smile on his face. "What did I tell you? Soon you won't be able to pull a stunt like that, not when there's no one around to help you."

    He then left the room with a laugh, and she realized she was shaking. Ronan's final words to her made it clear that her efforts at defending herself were not going to be forgotten any time soon. "I can't do this," she said once more. "I can't marry him."

    There was no question in Crystal's mind of what she needed to do next. Staying on Attilan would be impossible, because there was no way she could get around her duty there. She had to leave, and soon. But where could she go?

    The first place she thought of going was to the Fantastic Four. Having worked with them in the past, and also knowing them on a personal level, would make it a logical choice. Almost as soon as she came up with the idea, Crystal dismissed it. The other Inhumans also had ties to the team, and it would be the first place anyone would think to look for her. And what if they took Medusa's side in this? No, that wasn't a choice for her.

    That left the Avengers. If the mansion wasn't under construction, Crystal would have gone there and asked the team for help. While Pietro would likely offer her shelter, she wasn't certain how Luna would take to her presence there, and it would be another place at the top of the list of where to find her. Jan was a possibility, yet she didn't feel that she knew the other woman well enough to come to her door begging for sanctuary.

    What Crystal needed was a place where people wouldn't think to look for her right away, where she could trust she was safe. And as she thought of where to go, the answer came to her in a flash.

    Dane Whitman, the Black Knight. They had both been Avengers together, and he was someone who she could trust. He wasn't going to turn her over to her people, even if they did figure out where she had gone. From his home she could even contact Pietro and hopefully resolve some of the situation with Luna. The only problem there was going to be how she would get the medication that she would need to stay on Earth for an extended period of time, but Crystal pushed that aside for now.

    Now that the question of where she was going was solved, Crystal now looked to how she was going to get there. There was the option of just taking one of the shuttles, but they were guarded quite well and she knew that would make it easier for them to track her down.

    A familiar sound provided the answer to that problem. Lockjaw had vanished from her room shortly after Medusa had come in, and he was now looking at her as if he could tell what was wrong. Walking over to her bed, he began to nuzzle her.

    "Hey boy," she said as she grabbed his head. "What do you say we get out of here for a while?"

    A bark gave Crystal what she hoped was a positive answer.

    "Yeah, that's right. Do you remember Dane? And the Avengers?" Lockjaw hadn't spent a great deal of time with the team while Crystal had been a member, but the time he had spent was hopefully enough for him to know where they were going. "How about Aragorn?" His tail wagged harder. "That's right! So let's go!"

    Before she grabbed onto Lockjaw, Crystal left a brief note for her sister. It was short, and she hoped it wouldn't give any clues as to where she now was.

    There was a flash, and then Crystal could feel the grass beneath her feet. She had made it to Earth. She realized that she hadn't bothered to take anything with her other than the clothes on her back, and shrugged it off for now. "Good boy!" she said to the dog. "Stay with me, okay?" She wasn't sure why having him there felt like it would make a difference.

    Trying to see where she was, she could see Dane's home not to far away from where she now stood. _I'm here,_ she thought. _I'm safe._

    Lockjaw at her side, Crystal made her way to the front door.

 

* * *

 

    Since he wasn't expecting any visitors, Dane Whitman was confused as to who might be ringing his doorbell. He lived far enough away from other people that you normally didn't get people going door-to-door, and if there was some kind of emergency with the Avengers he would have gotten a call or message rather then a home visit.

    Deciding that it couldn't be too important, he went back to watching TV. It had been a long day at the mansion, and relaxing was essential afterwards. It was nice to be doing something with the Avengers, and getting to know people he hadn't worked with before better was a nice side note. Steve had asked him if he wanted to be considered for active membership once the work was done, but Dane wasn't ready to commit himself to anything right now.

    The doorbell was ringing multiple times now. It didn't look like whoever was there was going away any time soon. Sighing, Dane got up and made his way to the door. Hopefully he could get them to go away quickly and go back to relaxing.

    Nothing, however, would have prepared him for what he was now seeing. Crystal was standing at his door, with Lockjaw at her side. She looked pale and was shaking slightly.

    "Crystal! What in the world are you doing here?" He had gotten to know her fairly well during their tenure on the Avengers, and wasn't afraid to admit he had a bit of a crush on her then. Now Dane's feelings were strictly those of friendship.

    "I... I need to stay here. I can't do this. I just can't." Her voice was as rattled as the rest of her was.

    "Come in, then. Have a seat." He was uncertain of what was going to happen with Lockjaw. The dog was far too big to fit through the door, but Dane didn't think it would be right to just leave him outside. The issue was resolved by him vanishing from Crystal's side and appearing in the living room as they were getting there. He still felt that there was going to have to be some arrangements made for the animal, but this worked for now. "Now tell me what's wrong."

    He knew that there was something not right in Crystal's life when the whole situation with the Sentry had come to head. Virtually every team member had been a part of trying to take him down, even the more obscure ones or those who had served for only a brief period of time. Dane had asked Jan why she wasn't there, and had been told it wasn't possible right now. And while it wasn't unexpected that Wanda and Vision so far had played no part in the repairs, Crystal's absence stood out. He'd asked Pietro if he knew what was going on, and he had said "I do not wish to speak of it." If he'd been angry, Dane would have guessed that it was due to fear of conflict with her ex. Yet the reaction to the question had been one of concern and sadness instead. He hadn't known what to say to that, so remained silent.

    "It's a long story." She seemed to be more calm now. "It all started when I went with Medusa to a diplomatic mission to the Kree. And as part of the deal for an alliance between our people, she offered my hand in marriage to Ronan the Accuser."

    That was not something Dane thought he would hear. "What did you think?"

    "Then? I was surprised, but I knew that it was important to my people that we make the alliance. So I went along with things, and thought it was going to be alright until the second time Ronan and I met."

    "And then what happened?"

    "He said that he didn't want Luna with us any longer, that she had a father who could take care of her and having another man's spawn around was not what he wanted. I argued with him, but in the end Luna had to go to stay with Pietro. She hasn't spoken to me since then." Crystal looked away.

    Dane had heard that Luna was with her father, but he had just thought that it was time for her to be there. Pietro hadn't said anything to anyone about Crystal not being able to be with her child. "That's terrible. Why didn't Medusa make him give in?"

    "He said that the marriage would be off otherwise, and that in turn was going to lead to the alliance being canceled as well. It was what had to be done for the good of the Inhumans, and she did get Ronan to promise he would think about having Luna come back after the wedding." Her voice trembled a little on the last few words.

    Some of what had happened was becoming clear. "Even with that, I don't think that would be enough to send you running to my door. What came after that?"

    "I kept trying to talk to Luna, but the only one I ever spoke with was Pietro. But one day, Ronan overheard us speaking. He was furious, and he had said after the whole mess with Wanda that he didn't like how much we were speaking to each other. He practically accused me of wanting to have a relationship with him. I should have done something then, but I kept telling myself that things were going to be okay. Until today."

    There was a brief silence as Dane waited to see if Crystal was going to speak first. When she did not, he asked "What happened today?"

    She inhaled and started with "I was trying to get him to allow Luna to be a part of our wedding. I didn't think that she was going to want to be there. Yet if I didn't go and ask her to come, I knew that she would be even more convinced I didn't care about her anymore. We were arguing, and it was getting pretty heated. He told me that I was going to love him first and foremost and there would be no place for anyone else. I said that I wouldn't go forward if I couldn't have Luna with me, and then..." She took a deep breath and shut her eyes. "He grabbed me and said that he wasn't going to wait for the wedding night."

    Dane was shocked. "Did he..."

    "No, I was able to get him away from him. He was so angry, and then he left and went to find Medusa. I still don't know what he said to her, but she came to talk to me about what I did to Ronan. I would have told her what had really happened if he hadn't shown up in the doorway. And the worst part is that I don't think even if I was able to tell her everything she would have done anything anyway." Crystal was crying a little bit now.

    "Oh, God." He walked over to her side and took one of her hands in his. "Medusa didn't ask you any questions? She just believed Ronan?"

    "She did ask me if I had any reason for lashing out the way I had, but with Ronan there I couldn't say anything. I asked her if we could speak alone, but then he said if it was about him then I should say it in front of him. Medusa agreed, and that was that."

    He nodded. "And then you decided to come here. But why me? I would have thought the Fantastic Four would have been your first choice, since you know them so well."

    "I did think about going there at first. But that would be the first place anyone would think to look for me. I don't want to be found. If I have to be alone with Ronan again, I don't think I'll be quite as lucky as I was this time." Crystal's hands were now shaking.

    "I understand. You can stay here as long as you need to. Do you want me to get you anything?" The level of trust she was placing in him moved Dane, and he was determined to honor that trust.

    "Just something to drink for now. And I'm going to need some basic things, because I didn't bring anything with me but the clothes on my back."

    "Given what just happened to you, I'm not surprised that you just up and ran. Are you physically hurt in any way?" Dane doubted that Crystal was hurt, as she looked only shaken to his eyes and would have brought up if she needed medical attention.

    "Just a bit of bruising on my arm. The only real pain I'm feeling is the one in my heart," Crystal answered.

    "I wish I could do something to fix that," was his response.

    Heading into the kitchen to get her a drink, Dane wondered if it would be a good idea to tell Pietro that Crystal was staying here now. If she was so frightened about being discovered, then it might be better if her didn't know. He would ask her about this at some point.

    Crystal took the offered drink and gulped it down. "I was thinking about what to do with Lockjaw." The dog was currently stretched out near her feet. "I don't want to order him to go back, but it isn't fair to ask you to take him on too."

    "If he wants to stay with you, then I'll just make a place for him in the barn with Aragorn. Do you want to talk with Pietro at some point, let him know where you are?"

    There was a long pause. "I don't know. What if he tells me I need to go back and do my duty to my people? I did make a promise to marry Ronan. What will happen to everyone if I don't go through with it?"

    "What's going to happen to you if you go back? Let Medusa and Black Bolt handle the consequences of the alliance not happening. Ronan's shown himself pretty clearly to me. Even if you wind up changing your mind, stay here for now."

    His words were digested by Crystal. "I know you're right. I just feel so stupid for ignoring the signs for so long..."

    Dane gently replied "You were trying to convince yourself things were going to be alright. Most of us would try to do the same thing, especially if we didn't have much control over what was happening." He almost went and put his arm around her, but with the events of the day it seemed like it wouldn't be a good option.

    She looked down. "The worst part isn't what Ronan did. It's how Medusa acted afterwards. Why didn't she realize that something was wrong? Couldn't she understand I had a reason to want to speak to her alone, that there was something I couldn't say in front of Ronan?" Crystal at last broke down, only repeating the word "why?" over and over.

    Lockjaw went and placed his head in her lap, and Dane stood aside for a moment. In the end he went and placed his arm around her like he had wanted before.

    Crystal finally stopped crying, and looked at him. "Dane?"

    "Yes?"

    "Thank you."

 

* * *

 

    For the rest of the night Crystal sat down and watched TV with Dane. She wanted to ask him questions about how the Avengers were doing, about the progress of the mansion and all the little things she hadn't been able to hear about since the loss of her phone. Maybe now that she was here she could get another one.

    As it became later, Crystal had felt tired enough to want to go to bed. She asked Dane "Where is it that I'm going to be staying?"

    "Let me show you. The room's downstairs, and you'll have a really nice view of everything. Do you want to get Lockjaw set up first?"

    "That's probably for the best. I'll do that before I head there."

    Thankfully, Lockjaw didn't seem to mind his accommodations. He had gone and curled up in an empty stall, and Crystal gave him a kiss before going back inside. She wondered how Luna would feel if she brought him over for a visit. They'd always gotten along, and it might end up breaking the ice enough for her to talk to her mother.

    She'd come back indoors, and Dane showed her where she would be staying. And now Crystal was alone with her own thoughts.

    On some level she still wondered if people would tell her to stop being childish and do her duty. That was what her old friends would have told her. That was one of the major things the Inhumans emphasized as part of how their society kept running. Everyone knew their place and what they needed to do, and if you didn't follow through with your duties then things would fall apart.

    But not even in her wildest dreams had Crystal imagined she would be forgoing such a major responsibility. Medusa had told her multiple times how the deal with the Kree was essential to keep their people safe from harm, and she had shattered that deal in an instant. What if their enemies took advantage of this to launch an attack?

    Yet she knew that going back would end up even worse. Ronan had made it clear that he wasn't going to forget what had occurred between them, and the idea of having such a thing happen again was more frightening than anything else. (She still couldn't bring herself to actually say the word for what he had tried to do.)

    Crystal then turned her thoughts to what she would do now. At some point she wanted to go and see how the work on the mansion was proceeding and maybe go and help out. That might not be an option, based on how she hadn't been there for the team when they'd needed her recently. Almost everyone had been there to help with taking the Sentry down, and she hadn't even tried to show up. What was everyone going to think of her after that? She knew that she might not be welcomed back and that would make her world right now even smaller.

    Another problem was going to be her need for the medication that kept her protected from the effects of the atmosphere on Earth. The only person she knew who had been able to make it for her in the past was Reed, and Crystal was afraid he would take Medusa's side in this matter. Hadn't he and Sue always been close to her and Black Bolt? There was a chance that she could turn to Hank McCoy, but what if he was unable to produce what she needed?

    "Just focus on the now," she told herself. There was no way she was going to return to Attilan, not unless she was dragged back unwillingly. For now all Crystal was going to do was to be grateful Dane was giving her a place to stay and that she could hopefully reconnect with the Avengers. And from there she would go and try to see what the future might hold for her.

    She lay down and shut her eyes, but it was a long time before Crystal was able to get any sleep.

 

* * *

 

    Medusa had made the choice that it would be best if she waited until later that night before going and talking to Crystal again, giving her time to calm down.

    She was certain that Ronan was leaving something out of his account of the events that had transpired earlier today. He had made it sound as if Crystal had gone and lashed out at him without warning, as a reaction to what was a perfectly reasonable request. It was more likely that he had goaded Crystal in some way, most likely saying something vile about Luna. And if the alliance wasn't so crucial to the Inhumans then she would have been harsher with Ronan, asking more questions about what happened.

    But Crystal's reaction had gone far beyond what could be understandable. If she had only struck Ronan, or had said something, then Medusa would have just told her to try and keep a lid on her temper. An attack like this.... that was a very different story.

    Didn't she understand that if she had any hope of getting Luna back to live with her that Crystal had to cooperate with her soon-to-be husband? Ronan had still seemed to be in a bad mood when he left, and had said "I hope that you will be harder on Crystal than you were the previous time."

    "I feel the last time I acted appropriately, and this time there will need to be more consequences." The answer satisfied Ronan enough that he did not demand anything else before his departure. Medusa wasn't really planning on doing anything with Crystal other than speaking to her, as she was already effectively barred from traveling anywhere until her marriage.

    Knocking on her sister's door, she waited for a response. But there was nothing, not even Crystal telling her to go away.

    Medusa then repeated the action with more force, and said "Crystal? We have to talk now." And when there was no answer, she then said "If you don't answer me, then I'm just coming in."

    The door thankfully hadn't been locked, but it was clear from first sight that something was wrong. There was no sign of anyone there. The only way out of the room was through the door, and after the dispute earlier Medusa had ordered some guards to keep an eye on it. So Crystal couldn't have just gone off somewhere else in the city.

    "Crystal?" She knew that it was futile to even ask the question, that she was long gone. And lying on her bed was a piece of paper, which Medusa already knew the contents of before she even picked it up.

_Medusa,_

_I can't do this. I'm sorry. I will not be coming back, not even if the marriage is officially called off._

_I wish it did not have to be this way._

_Crystal_

    The first question she had to ask herself was exactly how she had left Attilan. Medusa thought that she'd likely gone and taken one of the shuttles, but then there was the question of how she'd gotten there without being seen. "Lockjaw," she muttered. If Crystal had been able to go with him, then she wouldn't have needed to even take a ship.

    Based on what she could see, her sister had taken nothing with her when she had fled. Where could she have gone with just the clothes on her back? Most likely it would be to the Fantastic Four. There she could get all of the things she needed to stay on Earth for an extended period of time. Additionally, she knew them well. The Avengers might have been a choice in the past, but with Crystal having to turn down their requests for help so recently Medusa doubted they would be a choice.

    She vowed to contact Reed and Sue as soon as she was finished giving the latest bad news to Ronan. When Crystal finally was returned she planned on sending her to live with him right away. Even if the marriage was not to take place quite yet, Crystal would do better if she was in a place where she could be kept out of trouble.

    Ronan's first words to Medusa were "Have you informed Crystal of why she must listen to my wishes?"

    "Unfortunately, I have not been able to do so. When I went to go and speak with her I found that she was gone."

    His voice sputtered with rage. " _Gone?_ Where has she fled?"

    "She left a note, but didn't say where she was going. I suspect that Crystal has gone to Earth, likely to the Fantastic Four."

    "Of course she would." His words confused Medusa for a moment, but then Ronan went on to say "I will be heading towards Earth to retrieve Crystal as soon as possible. This has gone on for far too long already."

    "Before you do that, I would like to speak with Sue and Reed. If Crystal has gone to them - and I have no doubt she did - then I have faith they will convince her to return home and carry out her duties." It would also give her the chance to address things with her sister before she had to leave her home for good.

    "I will. But let me know as soon as you hear from them. And once this situation is handled properly, I would like to request that Crystal be taken directly to my world and not be given the chance to act so foolishly again."

    "I promise that I will do so once she is back home." The eagerness in Ronan's voice to have Crystal by his side should have made Medusa feel relieved. After all, the alliance was safe for now. But she couldn't dismiss the feeling of something else lying within those words.

    Now Medusa sighed, and wondered if her relationship with Crystal was going to survive all this. If only it hadn't been necessary for her to promise her hand in marriage...

    But it had happened, and the only thing to do now was to go forward. Once she'd spoken to Sue, then Crystal would have to come back. There was no other way to keep their people safe. And Crystal knew well of the importance of duty.

 


	7. Ain't It Fun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dane speaks to Pietro about his new guest, while Medusa attempts to track her sister down. But what she learns may change her plans entirely.

    Throughout the night Dane kept hearing the sounds of Crystal getting up and moving around. He wasn't surprised by that, given the day she'd had. So when he got up for good and didn't see her, he just went to go make himself some breakfast as well as take care of the animals. (Looking into the refrigerator reminded him that if Lockjaw was going to be sticking around then he needed to stock up on some more meat.)

    It was when he had finished his meal that Crystal made her appearance. "I'm sorry if I bothered you last night. I just kept feeling so restless, like I had to go and move around."

    "Probably anxiety from everything that's happened. It wasn't a big deal. Do you want anything in particular?"

    "I'll just look around and see what you have." She began to look through the cabinets, and asked Dane "What are you going to be doing today?"

    "I didn't really have plans before. It's not one of the days I'm scheduled to help with the work on the mansion, but I was thinking of dropping in anyway."

    "Is there any major reason for that?'

    Dane went on to say "It's not my day to work, but it is one of Pietro's. And I was thinking that if you like we could go over there and tell him that you're staying with me for now."

    Crystal shook her head. "I don't feel like going anywhere today. You can go by yourself, and maybe I can call him later on. I wish I still had a phone - it makes a big difference when you can talk to people whenever you want."

    "What happened to your phone?" He could guess who might have been responsible for its loss although how it happened was not as easy to figure out.

    "When Ronan found out I was talking with Pietro he destroyed the phone and said he expected me to honor him above all others. He virtually accused me of trying to have some kind of intimate relationship with him." She sighed. "Even after that I told myself I had nothing to worry about, that he was just upset. But I knew better."

    Dane nodded, not knowing what else he could say.

    "Have you gone and made sure Lockjaw's been fed? Oh, what am I saying? Of course you would. And I have to do something about the pills I need to be taking if I want to stay here..."

    "Where is it that you normally get those pills?" He remembered how Crystal had taken medication when she was with the team to deal with the effects being on Earth brought for her, but had never asked too many questions about it.

    "Reed prepares them for me. But I'm afraid to talk to him about it. The Fantastic Four have always had a good relationship with Black Bolt and Medusa, along with the rest of the Inhumans. What if I go to Reed and he tells me to go back, or worse he goes and tells them where I am?" The panic in her voice was growing with each word.

    Doing his best to be consoling, Dane answered with "If they've been friends with the Inhumans, then it mean they're also friends with you. I'm sure that once you've explained what exactly caused to come running to my door Reed will be fully on your side."

    Crystal said, "I hope that you're right. And can I make a request for when you go and talk with Pietro?"

    "What is it that you need?"

    "Not need so much as want. I'd prefer if you didn't give all the details as to why I had to come here. Just say something about how Ronan tried to hurt me."

    "Why do you want me to do that?" He hoped that Crystal didn't think that Pietro was going to blame her for what happened. Everything he knew about him made that seem impossible to believe. Pietro was almost certainly going to be the biggest supporter she had.

    Crystal gave him a sheepish look. "Because I know Pietro, and I know that if he hears all the details of what happened he's going to go off and do something stupid. I can make an educated guess as to what would happen if he went off to confront Ronan or Medusa. I'd like to not have that sitting on my shoulders."

    That made sense given all he knew about Pietro. "I promise I won't tell him. But please give Reed a call while I'm gone."

    She responded with "I will, and I hope things work out."

    "I have every faith in the world that they will. See you later, Crystal."

 

* * *

 

    During the mansion project, there were always five or six Avengers who would be doing the work for the day. What work got done depended on who was doing said work. Today Dane knew the people there were Pietro, Jan, Julia, Sam, and Lupe. He hoped that his being there wasn't going to cause any problems or cause Pietro to act as foolishly as Crystal thought he might.

    Stepping onto the grounds, the first person to spot him was Lupe. "Dane!" she said in the same slightly awed tone she normally took with other Avengers. This was likely due to her being one of the newer members as well as being still quite young. "I didn't think I'd be seeing you today. You weren't on the schedule for today, were you?"

    "Hey Dane." It was Sam who had come over this time. "What brings you here today?"

    "Well, I'm actually here to speak with Pietro. Can you tell me where he is right now?"

    "Pietro? He's out back with Jan." Sam gave him a bit of a confused look and asked "Is something wrong? The two of you aren't really close enough to just drop in on each other at times."

    "Yeah, there's something going on. I'd rather talk with him about it before I tell everyone else, though." Unlike Crystal, Dane had little doubt that the team was going to want to know about what was going on.

    "That's not a problem. Oh, when you do speak to Pietro tell him I want an Italian sub for lunch today." Sam gave him a big grin and added "Since he can come and go in a flash he's been appointed the official deliverer of meals today."

    Dane laughed. "I'll be sure to put the order in."

    Just as Sam had said, Pietro was standing and listening to whatever it was Jan was telling him. When she saw Dane, she waved at him, saying "Hi there. Did you leave something behind yesterday?"

    "I'm actually here to see Pietro," he answered.

    Pietro looked to be quite shocked to hear that. Dane didn't count himself as being particularly close to him, largely due to his rather abrasive nature. Wanda had told him once that Pietro was so used to being rejected by those who met him that he normally chose a good offense as being the best defense. He walked over to Dane and asked "What is it you want?"

    "Can we step away for a moment? I have something a bit private to tell you." He did so, and Dane said "Crystal's staying with me now. She just showed up last night."

    "She is? Is she all right? Was she hurt?" The annoyance Pietro had shown on his face quickly faded away to concern.

    "Physically she's fine, at least as far as I can tell. But things with Ronan reached a tipping point last night. Crystal wanted to invite Luna to be part of their wedding, and then things turned bad. She said that she realized she couldn't go through with this. She thought about going to the Fantastic Four, but said that would be the first place anyone would look for her. I was someone she knew and trusted, and there wasn't as much of a chance people would think to look there."

    Pietro took all of Dane's words in. "I knew that there was going to be trouble with Ronan when I heard him yelling at her the last time we spoke. I had no idea who I could turn to, and the only plan I was able to put in place didn't work out." He sighed with a measure of relief. "Has she gone and done something about the pills she needs to be taking? I can guess that she might be concerned about what Reed might say if Medusa or someone else asks about her, but..."

    "Crystal's promised me she's going to speak to either Reed or Sue about getting what she needs. I think that they can also get some things for her, because she came with absolutely nothing." Dane had wondered for a while how Pietro felt about Crystal now that they were apart. The look in his eyes when he had started to voice his worries about the medication pretty much told him everything he needed to know. He now wondered if Pietro knew how obvious his feelings were.

    The next person to say anything was Jan, who interrupted with "I didn't mean to listen in, but I did hear the two of you mentioning Crystal. What's happened with her? I've been so worried since we last talked."

    Pietro and Dane looked at each other. The former was the one to speak first. "Crystal's staying with Dane for now. Things with Ronan apparently went too far for her to stay. But she came with nothing and I was wondering if you could help with that."

    "I'll come and bring by a huge bag of stuff for her. I knew that this might happen when I asked her to come help us out during the whole Bob mess. Ronan getting so mad when he heard that you were going to be working with the team at some point... that set off a lot of red flags for me. I did try to call Crystal recently, but I never got through."

    "That would be because Ronan destroyed her phone after she was caught talking to Pietro about Luna. So there wouldn't have been an answer. I don't know if a phone would be something you could get for Crystal or not, but she would really appreciate it."

    "I'll get her as many phones as she wants. In fact, have her make a list of what she wants and I'll get it for her." Jan asked "Do you know if Crystal's going to want to help out with the work on the mansion or not?"

    "That didn't come up during our conversation so far. I think that the answer is going to be yes, but first she needs to talk to Reed about getting the medication she's going to need to stick around for a while."

    "Oh, right. Well, just give me a heads-up before Crystal wants to come, so I can fit her into the rota." She then added "Tell her that I'm thinking about her and we all miss her."

    Dane knew that those words would help ease some of the worries that were living in her head. "I know that she'll be glad to hear that. One more thing before I go: Pietro, Sam told me to tell you that he wants an Italian sub for lunch today."

    A sigh greeted the news. "Then I'm going to hope that everyone else wants sandwiches as well, because the last thing I want to do today is make multiple stops to satisfy everyone's palate."

    Dane wondered if he should laugh at that, but decided that it would be for the best if he opted to remain silent. "Let us know when it might be a good time to arrange for Crystal and Luna to meet up."

    Pietro replied "I'll call her tonight. Thank you, Dane."

    He didn't know if the thanks were for helping out Crystal or for giving him the news, but either way his answer was "You're welcome."

 

* * *

 

    There were few humans that Medusa felt were worthy of her trust. She would be the first to admit that she hadn't really gotten to know very many of them, but everything she heard about went on in their world indicated she was on the right track in not having too much regard for the race.

    Virtually the sole exception to this sentiment was the Fantastic Four. Medusa had known them for many years, and they understood more than anyone else about the way Inhuman society worked. It made perfect sense that both Crystal would go to them and that they would understand why it was so important to have her come back.

    So when she first heard Sue's voice saying "Hello?" Medusa had already planned how things would go. She would ask if Crystal was there, would speak with her sister, and if all else failed get Sue to persuade her to go and do her duty.

    "Sue? It's Medusa. I was wondering if by any chance Crystal was there."

    There was a long pause, and Sue's next words were said in a rather cool tone. "Unfortunately she is not. Why did you think she was here?"

    "Because she left a note for me saying that she was leaving and not coming back. You and your family are the ones that she's closest to, and therefore it was the best place for me to seek her out."

    "And why, may I ask, did Crystal want to leave in the first place?'

    This was not going the way she had planned. "She has been having issues with her future husband, and rather than staying and working out those issues Crystal chose to throw a fit and leave."

    By Sue's voice had changed from cool to downright hostile. "And what might those issues be?"

    Trying to salvage the situation, she said "The first major issue is that of Luna and her presence in the wedding. Ronan does not feel comfortable with another man's child, especially since her father is Pietro. You know what he is like."

    "I am well aware that Pietro does his best to be a good father to his daughter. It can be difficult to get along with him sometimes, but he surely understands that it's for the best to get along the man who is marrying Crystal. Besides, people say the same things about Reed, and none of the Inhumans have problems with him. Why would Ronan have such an issue with him?"

    The question made Medusa stop in her tracks. Why did Ronan have so many issues with Pietro? It was clear that he did not want Crystal having anything to do with him, but shouldn't things have been acceptable as long as he did not have to interact with him directly? Why was it so important to cast Luna out of Crystal's life?

    It wasn't like she hadn't tried to reason with Ronan over the Luna issue. Medusa had pointed out that urging Crystal to go and leave her child like that was only going to lead to prolonged resentment between them. That in turn would lead to unhappiness in the marriage, and wouldn't that cause even more problems in the long run? Yet all he had said in response to that was "If Luna is not sent to her father, then I cannot go forward with either this marriage or the alliance." And what then could she do? Black Bolt and her had discussed how important it was to maintain some type of alliance with outsiders, and the Kree were both the strongest of potential allies and the most conveniently placed to work with them. But had the price she had to pay for the deal been higher than Medusa could have ever imagined?

    "I can't explain his reasoning, but Ronan made it clear to me that he would not go forward with our deal unless Luna was no longer there. He did say he would think about having her return after the marriage." His exact words hadn't been quite that optimistic - he had said that after Crystal and him were settled down that he would think about introducing Luna into their lives. She'd wisely chosen to not let Crystal know of the uncertainty since have to do such a thing as leaving her daughter was already hard enough.

    "Do you think that it might be possible that Ronan was jealous of Crystal spending any time with a man she once had a relationship with? Now I can't say anything for you, but I know that if a friend of mine was telling me their fiance was ordering them away from spending time with people they knew, I would be telling them to stay away from that person. Doesn't that sound like sound advice to you?"

    Sue's angry words were causing Medusa to feel worse than she already was. Ronan had told Crystal that he did not even wish for her to speak to Pietro because of how it might look. She had just taken this as being evidence that he was nervous about his future bride, but looking at it together with his refusal to accept Luna her thoughts were headed in a very different direction. All she could get herself to say was "Perhaps."

    "And do you want to know something else? I was recently seeing if it might be possible for Crystal to drop in, spend a little time with me before her wedding. Just a girls thing. The first time we spoke she sounded like she wanted to come, but she had to think about it before agreeing. And sure enough, she ended up telling me she couldn't make it. I almost went and got you on the line with how different Crystal sounded. She was afraid of something, I could tell. And do you want to know more?" Sue's voice was rising with each sentence. "I had to leave a message with someone else because when I tried to reach Crystal directly I never heard back from her. She said that her phone had gotten broken, and when I asked if she could send it to us to get fixed she said that wasn't an option. Then I talked about sending her a replacement, but that wasn't possible either. Did she tell you anything about breaking her phone, or did you just not care?"

    Medusa's first instinct was to protest vigorously at the idea she didn't care about her sister. Yet the story of the phone caused her to think back to the dinner when Ronan had mentioned Crystal contacting Pietro. She had seemed quieter than usual, and she had also given in very quickly to the idea that she shouldn't be doing something like that any longer. Thinking back to that night also brought to mind the various looks Ronan had been giving Crystal during the meal. He had been smiling at her many times, but once had appeared to be a gesture of affection now took on a sinister role. "I was not even aware that something had happened to Crystal's phone. She never mentioned it."

    Sue said "I wonder why she might not have felt like she could tell you. I know what I thought when I first heard. There are things that tell you a lot about a person, and if they are being that controlling of who their partner spends time with it's not much of a stretch to guess they might do things to their possessions as well."

    It was hard to even think about the idea that Ronan had done something to Crystal's phone. While the Luna issue still made Medusa unhappy, she had always found her interactions with the man to be pleasant. Ronan was a far cry from the often sullen and remote Pietro, as he was charming and always unfailingly polite. Among the Inhuman people he had won a great deal of favor - a task that most outsiders were not able to do. She had overheard people saying that Crystal finally had chosen a decent partner, and while that wasn't the kind of thing you wanted to hear about your sister it was a relief that Ronan was being so well received.

    Gathering herself together, she asked Sue "What is it you are trying to say by saying that Ronan was the one to destroy Crystal's phone?"

    Sue's anger was now tempered by disbelief. "You really can't guess what I'm saying? It's obvious to me that Ronan is the kind of person who is going to abuse whoever he's involved with. And that might be a reason why Crystal decided to take off without telling you where she had gone."

    Medusa had known even before she asked the question what Sue's answer was going to be. And she still couldn't believe it. It was not so much the idea Ronan could have abusive tendencies that was so hard to accept. Instead the problem was that if such a thing was happening, then why hadn't Crystal said something prior to yesterday?

    But looking back as to when she had gone to speak to her sister about her behavior, Medusa could now see what she hadn't been noticing before. Crystal had wanted to speak to her alone, and she had said that she couldn't go through with the marriage now. Why hadn't she asked questions then? Was the alliance worth sacrificing her sister for the potential of some gain for the Inhuman people? Swallowing, Medusa said "Crystal never said anything that would point me in that direction. If what you are saying is true, then how could I have misjudged things so badly?"

    "Did you ever go and think about how things might go wrong? How well did you know Ronan before deciding that he would be a good choice of husband for Crystal? When did she find out about getting married? One of the biggest things I've noticed about Inhuman society is that everyone is always supposed to act in a way that benefits the whole people, not just themselves. That's something I normally admire, but what about times when an individual is going to pay too much for what they need to do?" Sue sounded slightly less angry than she had before although Medusa still wasn't going to call her friendly.

    "The offer of marriage might not have been necessary for the alliance to succeed. I did not want Crystal to brood over what might happen before it actually occurred."

    Her efforts at defending her actions were weak, and Medusa knew it. Yet it was still hard to accept that she had made so many errors in judgment. Sue's eventual response was to say "Well, I'm willing to guess that she might be brooding a bit now."

    Realizing that she had managed not only to damage the relationship she had with her sister but also with the few humans she admired, Medusa at last stated "If you do hear anything from Crystal..."

    "If I do, there is no way in hell that I will tell you anything." It was the final nail in the coffin for any friendship the two women had possessed.

    "I just want her to know that I'm sorry I didn't listen to what she was saying. I hope that one day she might forgive me."

    Sue's answer was "That depends on Crystal."

    Medusa shook her head as she heard the words. _I know._

 

* * *

 

    There were three times in Luna Maximoff's life when she had lived on Earth. The first time had been back when her mother had become an Avenger. She didn't remember that all too clearly since she had been pretty little then. The few scattered memories she had - playing with her parents, helping Jarvis in the kitchen, and the other members of the team being with her - told Luna that things had been better then than they had been at any other time. She wondered why they hadn't stayed longer. Dad just said that there were other things going on, and her mother had gotten upset if Luna talked about the Avengers with her after she and Dad had split up. Now she guessed she was never going to get an answer to that.

    The second time now didn't feel as awful to think about. Luna had known something was wrong when her parents didn't get back as soon as they promised, and even before she heard the news it was easy to tell what happened by the look in Dad's eyes. They hadn't spent as long on Earth that time as they had the first time. Luna also had felt unhappy for so much of the time, what with her mother gone and her father struggling to cope. It had hurt to listen at night and hear his cries when he thought she was sleeping. (Sometimes if she looked at Dad the right way he seemed blue, but that happened so fast Luna wondered if she had really been seeing it.) But her mother had come back, they had left, and things had ended up separating them all again. That was the worst of all that, Luna concluded.

    Now she was back on Earth for what was going to be the longest time. She had made the vow on the day she left that she was never coming back to Attilan again, no matter what. Luna couldn't understand why her aunt and uncle hadn't just gone and told that stupid Ronan to leave and never come back. That's what she would have done if she was in charge. Luna hoped that Aunt Medusa would try and talk to her at some point, not because she wanted to hear an apology but rather due to wanting to get to say all of the things that were running through her head. Most of them weren't very nice, so she thought she'd get in trouble with Dad for saying them even if they were true.

    The way Dad was acting made her feel confused. She'd thought that he would be angry with her mother for just dumping her like that. Dad could get really upset when something made him angry, yet he still talked about her mother the same way he always did. Luna wished he was angry like she was because it would make her feel better about being so mad with someone she'd once loved very much.

    There were different ways that people got angry, which Luna had figured out only a little while ago. Most of the time it was sort of a bright red flash that didn't last for very long. If the red color was darker, that told her that the person who was mad was going to keep on being angry for a while. Ever since Luna had started seeing the colors, the pattern had almost always held true.

    Ronan was the first person Luna had met who broke her color patterns in many ways. When she did see the colors in people, they always had a whole bunch of different ones swirling around. Some of them were pretty easy to figure out - besides red being anger, blue meant sadness and if the colors were all joined together in a rope of sorts that meant love. (It had been only after she saw the same thing again and again with parents and children as well as couples holding hands that Luna had realized what the rope was. She still felt proud of being able to get that one by herself.) Naturally she'd wanted to see what colors her stepfather was going to have.

    Yet the first glimpse had been confusing. When Ronan was looking at her mother there wasn't any sign of that rope, not even a thread. What Luna saw was a confusing mix of red and green and yellow all in equal parts. That combination wasn't one she had seen before. She had gone to speak to Ronan mainly because what she was seeing was so strange to her. And when he had dismissed her, he had flared up in a bright red that normally only lasted for a few seconds. Yet there were still traces of that red remaining when Luna watched him leave.

    He hated her, that she could tell. It was frustrating to have to deal with someone who hated you for no real reason. Lots of the other Inhumans didn't like her, but Luna at least knew why that was the case. Most of them didn't like Dad, and the fact she had been born appearing to be every bit an ordinary human. Not that knowing the reasons made things any better, because it wasn't like she could do anything to change them. Sometimes she wondered if things would be different if they knew about the colors. Luna had a feeling that the answer was going to be "no."

    And that hate was the reason her mother had decided to just go and dump her. If Luna had been able to see her own colors she knew that there would be a lot of red there right now. Why did what that stupid Ronan wanted mean more than Luna herself? Aunt Medusa had tried to talk to her about what her duty to the Inhumans was, but she didn't want to hear that. It wasn't like she was really one of them anyway, so why should she worry about her duties to people who didn't want her?

    Starting to clench her fists, Luna switched to thinking about when it was Dad was going to come back home. Today was one of the days he went to go work on fixing up the mansion, and while she had gone with him a couple of times she'd decided to stay home today. It was really funny looking at everything all messed-up. Everything that had happened was so hard to believe. First there was that Robert guy who'd made everyone think Aunt Wanda was doing all those things. Luna wished that the other Avengers had gone and talked to her, because she could have told them that her aunt knew about her cousins so Aunt Jan couldn't have just made her remember. That led into the second thing which was learning that Billy and Tommy were still alive. She'd met them before they went away, but couldn't tell anybody what they'd been like since she had been really little then. Since her cousins had come back to Aunt Wanda and Uncle Vision Luna had spent some more time with them. It was great how everything had worked out in the end and her aunt and uncle were back together as a family.

    Luna could remember asking Dad once "Do Aunt Wanda and Uncle Vision still love each other?"

    "Your aunt does. I'm not certain about your uncle, but I think that the answer is yes," had been what he'd told her.

    "Then why don't they tell each other that?" It made no sense to her that if you still loved somebody but you weren't seeing them anymore you might want to let the other person know about it.

    Dad just sighed and said "Relationships are complicated."

    It was the kind of answer that grown-ups gave _all_ the time when you asked them something tough. Luna suspected that it was a way to not have to answer a question that you didn't know the answer to, not really. When she got to be a grown-up she was going to always answer the questions kids asked her, even if the answer was "I don't know."

    "Luna?" Dad's voice drew her out of her thoughts. "I've got some important news for you. Can you come here?"

    "Okay," she said. She hoped that the news wasn't that it was alright for her to go back to Attilan. Luna knew that if that was the case she was going to say no and get real upset. But Dad knew how she felt about her old home now. He wouldn't have said it was important that she know that, so it had to be something else.

    When she got there, she noticed Dad looked upset. "Luna, your mother is staying on Earth now."

    That was the very last thing she had expected to hear. "Why?" Not that she cared. She hoped Dad wasn't going to try and get them to talk now.

    "Things with Ronan went too far for her to handle anymore. Mom knew she wasn't safe if she stuck around, so now she's going to be living with your Uncle Dane for a while."

    "So why didn't she come here?" Luna liked Uncle Dane, and she knew that he had been an Avenger at the same time her parents had been there. But it made her even more angry to think that Dad and her hadn't been the people her mother had trusted enough. "What's wrong with us?"

    Dad answered with "Because Mom thought that people would come looking for her right away if she came to stay with us. Your uncle isn't the first choice and that will keep her safe for longer."

    "What's she worried is going to happen?"

    "Ronan might come and take her away. He's shown her a lot of signs that he will be the kind of person who's going to hurt people that he is married to. I think that those signs are what made her decide to run." He added, "She brought Lockjaw with her, just so you know."

    Lockjaw had been one of the few things about Attilan that Luna really missed. The only other thing had been her cousin Ahura, who had been one of the few people there who never said a word about her not being an Inhuman. "Then he can come and see me, but I'm not talking to her. I meant it when I said I was never speaking to her again."

    His mouth turned down. "Regardless of whether or not you are choosing to speak with your mother, you will have to be present when she comes to visit us. I expect you to be on your best behavior then."

    Luna noticed a trace of a familiar rainbow thread coming from Dad. She had been planning on saying something mean, but seeing the colors made her pause. Was Dad so upset with her that he didn't love her as much as he normally did?

    But when she gave him a second glance the rope that looked like it was joining them still seemed as strong as ever. It dawned on her who the thread might be for, and she struggled to take in this new piece of information. Normally if you left someone you didn't still love them, right? (Her aunt and uncle were different in that respect, but everything about their relationship fell outside the norm anyway. Luna didn't really think you could look at them and say that the way they were was the way things should be.)

    Something about her silence must have made Dad worry, because he then said "I know that this is hard for you to deal with, Luna. Mom feels bad enough that she had to send you away already. If you really don't want to talk to her, then you don't have to. But I do want you to be there when she does come to visit. If you want to, you can just play with Lockjaw the whole time."

    Luna had one more question that was nagging at her. "Why didn't Mom go and leave when that dumb Ronan said I couldn't stay?" It came as a bit of a surprise that she had called her mother that. She'd vowed that once she had left Attilan she was never going to call her anything ever again. She reminded herself how awful it had been to be sent away so she didn't do it again.

    "I believe that she felt like she had to do her duty towards her people. Aunt Medusa told her that having an alliance with the Kree was something they really needed to do. Mom probably felt like if she said no then the Inhumans would be in a lot of trouble. That would make her feel terrible if something ended up happening."

    "But why didn't she just tell Aunt Medusa that Ronan was the kind of person who was going to hurt her? Then she wouldn't have had to leave."

    There was a large patch of blue Luna saw on Dad's face before he said "I think that she was afraid people wouldn't believe her."

    "Why?"

    Dad sighed. "People like Ronan who hurt others can be very charming sometimes. If Mom saw him only being nice to your aunt then she might have felt it wouldn't sound right. And she also might have not wanted to admit that she was seeing signs of trouble, since it was so important for her to get married and seal the alliance."

    Luna had no idea why someone would think that it was okay to stay with someone who was going to hurt you just because it was important to other people. If it was just something that wasn't really much fun but was going to be good it would be different. "That sounds dumb."

    "It may seem that way to you, but Mom feels differently about what her duties are."

    She thought about that for a while. "Is she going to go back to Attilan in a little bit or is she staying for good?"

    "I think that I'm going to have to talk to her before I can say one way or another."

    "Do you want her to stay?"

    Luna wasn't quite sure why she'd asked that question, or if the answer was even going to matter. Dad didn't look at her when he said "What I want doesn't matter. Your mother is the one who needs to make the choice."

    She had no idea was she was supposed to say to that. Something in her knew that Dad did want to have her mother around, and that wasn't a good thing. She just ended up nodding in the end.

    Dad sounded pleased with that. "I'm glad you're trying to be mature about this, Luna. It makes a big difference to me."

    Luna wasn't sure if she was really being mature or not. A large part of her still wanted to yell about how her mother had left her so easily, and how she was tired of not really belonging in the place she called home.

    But she didn't say anything, just smiled when Dad asked "Do you want to help with dinner?" and followed him to the kitchen.

 


	8. Things Can Only Get Better

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crystal adapts to her new life on Earth, while Ronan finds he is no longer welcomed among the Inhumans.

    Crystal spent most of the day trying to relax. She went outside to play with Lockjaw for a period of time, put together a simple lunch, and watched a little television. She knew that she was trying to put off having to contact Reed for as long as she could, but in the end knew she had to get in touch with him.

    "Yes?" If you weren't someone who knew Reed Richards all that well the greeting would have come across as being extremely rude. Social norms were not something that came as easily to him as did virtually everything else in the world, and Crystal thought she was lucky that he had answered the phone in the first place.

    "Reed? It's me, Crystal."

    "Oh! Crystal! Medusa was calling and asking about where you might be not that long ago."

    Her blood ran cold. "Then I'm sorry for disturbing you." She almost ended the call right there, but waited a few seconds to see what would come next.

    "No, no, don't be concerned. Sue made it clear to Medusa that she was not going to say even if she did know where you were, and gave her an earful of what she thought of the whole idea of you marrying Ronan in the first place. If you hadn't called I know Sue was going to put out some feelers with the Avengers to get in touch with you and see about getting your medication. I'm going to guess that's why you called me."

    While Reed sounded like he was on her side, Crystal still couldn't bring herself to feel safe in revealing her location. "Do you want me to come and see you, or is there another place we could meet up?"

    "It might be best if - Sue! Guess who's on the phone!" Reed then told her "Sue's just come in. Do you think it would be better if you spoke with her first?"

    Sue felt like a safer choice than Reed, for whatever reason. "If she wants to talk to me, then put her on."

    Her familiar voice felt like balm to Crystal's soul. "I'm so happy to hear that you've left Attilan. I knew that there was going to be trouble when you couldn't come over for the get-together I wanted to have."

    Some of her nerves began to ebb away as Crystal realized she wasn't going to be told to go back immediately. "I wanted to come, but Ronan heard about it and asked if I was going to be seeing Johnny then. I said that you mentioned everyone seeing me, and he got upset. With how things had gone when he discovered I was talking to Pietro, I didn't dare say yes. That was one of the things that made me suspect married life wasn't going to be all that much fun for me. Since it was so important for the alliance between our people to go forward I never really thought about trying to back out. But I knew what was going on." It still burned to admit that she had been lying to herself for so long. Crystal hated to think about how stupid she had been, how she had justified the way Ronan was treating her until the point came when it was impossible to do so.

    "Knowing and being able to act on what you know are two very different things. I wish I had been able to make more of a push to get you here. After Pietro talked to me about what happened with Luna, then I could see the writing on the wall. I wonder if things might have been different if I'd gone and spoken to Medusa before I talked to you."

    Crystal was surprised to hear that Pietro had been thinking of her. What with how she'd thrust Luna so abruptly into his life him being angry with her would make sense. Yes, he'd never seemed all that upset when they spoke on the phone, but for all she knew he was trying to keep up appearances for Luna's sake. "I'm afraid that even if you had spoken to her nothing would have changed. She didn't let me explain what happened when I realized there was no way I could go through with marrying Ronan, even if it meant the loss of the alliance."

    Sue asked "What did happen between you?"

    It was still nearly impossible for her to say the exact word for what Ronan was going to do to her. Crystal suspected it might be a way of denying things, but right now she didn't want to go and think about it for very long. "He didn't want Luna to even come to the wedding. He said he wasn't going to wait for the wedding night."

    There was a small gasp. "God. I had no idea it was that bad. And Medusa didn't believe you when you told her that?"

    She defended her sister in part by saying "I didn't tell her what happened, not really. Medusa came to talk to me about my lashing out at Ronan and at first I was just shocked she didn't ask for my version of events right away. I would have told her everything at some point, but before I was able to do that he came back over and kept sending me these threatening looks. I tried to get a chance to speak with her alone. Then Ronan jumped in and said that if I had some problem with him I should be able to say it in front of him. And then I knew that there was no way I could stay."

    Sue's next words were spoken in a much softer tone than before. "She still should have asked more questions. Medusa knows you well enough to know that you aren't the type to just lose your temper randomly. May I ask what exactly you did to Ronan?"

    "Set his clothing on fire, and caused a small earthquake."

    She laughed. "I can't say that he didn't have it coming. I wonder what story he told her about what happened."

    "Some account where I just attacked him without warning, I bet. He was always so charming whenever he spoke to Medusa or Black Bolt. After what happened with my phone I almost wondered if what had happened was just being misread by me, because Ronan seemed so much like a person I would want to get to know then."

    "That's what people like him tend to do." Sue then proceeded to get down to business. "I'm guessing that you're going to need your pills pretty soon. Where are you staying?"

    "With Dane."

    "That's a good place for you to be. Reed should be able to come over tomorrow. Based on what I know you should be okay until then. But give us a call if you start feeling sick at any time."

    "I promise I will." Crystal felt completely at ease by now. Sue hadn't wanted to tell Medusa anything about her whereabouts, and that meant the chances of anyone showing up unannounced were low.

    The two women said their farewells, and Crystal wondered if she should go and start dinner. She had no intentions of being an inconsiderate guest to Dane, and this was something she could do without leaving the house. But since she didn't know if he had any plans, she opted to just continue waiting without taking action.

    "Crystal?" Dane sounded like he wanted her to come to see him right away.

    Coming over, Crystal noticed he had a large shopping bag with him. "You didn't have to get anything. I'm fine for now."

    "It's not from me. This is all Jan. Once she found out you'd come here with only the clothes on your back she pulled me aside as I was starting to head back. Told me to go to her place and get a bunch of stuff for you. Shouldn't surprise me that she knows your size off the top of her head - that's the kind of thing Jan makes her business to know. I hope this will keep you going for a few days at the very least. Did you call Reed?"

    Starting to go through the bag, she answered with "Yes." One item in particular caught her eye, and she pulled it out to see if her initial impression was right. "Oh! It's my Avenger's jacket! I didn't know Jan had it with her." She smiled at all the memories it brought up.

    Dane remarked "At least you can say that the jacket looked good on you. I always felt like a fool when I put it on over my armor. And can you remember how Sersi looked when she first saw it?"

    Crystal started to laugh. Jan had introduced the jackets as being a sort of team-building thing, and while the intentions were noble she clearly hadn't thought much about how they would look with the variety of costumes they wore. She had been one of the lucky ones, but Dane had always struggled to get his to fit and Sersi had given them such a disbelieving look when she first saw it that made it hard to keep from chuckling. "I sure can. And when you asked her if that meant she didn't want it, she said 'No. I want to keep this around so Jan will always be reminded of the crime against fashion she has perpetuated.' I think it really worked, given how embarrassed Jan looked whenever she saw her wearing it."

    Dane began to giggle a bit as he too remembered that day. "God, we had some great times together, didn't we? I wish it could have lasted longer."

    "So do I," was Crystal's answer. She still missed the friends she had made during her brief time as an Avenger. Maybe if she had kept in touch with them better she wouldn't be in this situation right now.

    "Can I ask why it was you didn't stick around for a longer period of time? I know that you were happy here, and to be honest a part of me was wondering if I had something to do with it."

    Dane didn't need to be worried, as Crystal began to explain how things had gone. "Part of the problem was having to be so far away from my home and my people. I'd never spent so long apart from them, and I felt homesick sometimes. Then when I did go back for brief periods of time, I could hear talk about how much I was changing. The few people I counted as friends in Attilan said they didn't really know me anymore. While that was happening, it made me feel like I wasn't part of the world I used to live in. In the end it was easier to just go back." She left out how much of the talk had focused on how Pietro never should have been allowed to marry her, and that it was because of him that she had gotten such foolish ideas.

    "But if being here meant so much to you, then why didn't you just ignore the things people said?"

    "You have to understand a little bit about how my people live. Inhumans are normally very set in their ways and in how things should be. You almost always will end up doing the work that your parents did, and most of the time people just don't even think about other options. I also had the additional burden of having ties to the Royal family. So my behavior was even more carefully looked at than a random person's would be. I spent my whole life thinking about what was best for my people instead of myself, and being an Avenger was not something that fell under that umbrella. I wish that I had been able to share all this with Pietro, though. Who knows what might have happened then?"

    Dane seemed confused. "Why didn't you?"

    Crystal wished she could go and explain. "I just didn't want to make him upset, that's all." She'd never felt like she could talk to her former husband the way she knew she should. Any problems or difficulties never were able to go past her lips. All of the marriages she had seen among her people never had any disputes or disagreements. Her parents had never fought, never said anything that wasn't agreed upon by both of them. When there had been issues between her and Pietro Crystal hadn't known where to turn. No one else she knew had ever had trouble with their spouse, so why were things going wrong for her?

    Dane stated, "I think that in the end if you can't address things they'll end up getting worse." He thankfully changed the subject. "Jan also asked me if you wanted to come and help us out with the work on the mansion. A lot of the basic structure has been taken care of, but there are still a whole bunch of little things we're in the process of doing. I obviously didn't want to answer for you so I said we hadn't talked about it. Is that okay with you?"

    "I'd love to help, as soon as Reed can get me my medication. Is there a day that they'll want me there in particular?"

    "I'm scheduled to go work a couple of days from now. You can just come with me." He added, "Pietro won't be there then, if you're worried about that."

    "Don't worry about that. It's not a problem. I'm going to go and visit him at some point this week anyway." Crystal then said "I thought about maybe starting dinner or something, but I didn't know if you had anything planned or not."

    "I did. I was going to order pizza."

    The sly expression on his face combined with what he said caused Crystal to once again burst out laughing. "Then let me put in a request for extra cheese and peppers."

    Dane, by now laughing himself, said "As long as you let me have my mushrooms."

    "I think that we can negotiate over how the pie is divided," she answered.

    Composing himself, he responded with "Let me call the place and we'll see how things go."

    For the first time in quite a while Crystal felt completely at ease. There was no need to worry about what she said or did, and she knew she was safe with those who knew she was there. All that remained to make things even better was to have some reconciliation with Luna and then her life would be complete.

    There was still a slight feeling of something still missing in her heart, but she shoved it aside in order to focus on the good.

* * *

 

    By the time Crystal headed out with Dane to begin helping out with the mansion product, she had not only gotten the medication that she needed to stay on Earth, but she had also gotten something else. Reed had spoken with her about an idea he had: creating some form of immunization that would make it no longer essential for her to have to take the medication. "But what if it doesn't work?" she had asked upon hearing the news. Becoming sick like she had in the past from spending too much time on the planet was even less of an attractive option right now than it had been in the past.

    "We'll be doing blood draws so that we can keep an eye on how things are going. I can tinker with the injections based on what I see there. I don't see any reason why this shouldn't work, and if all goes well then you won't have to worry about building up a resistance to the pills like you have in the past. I wish I had thought of this earlier - then you might have been able to stay with the Avengers for longer."

    Reed's words made Crystal wonder how it was that so many people seemed to know how much being an Avenger had meant to her. The only person she had ever talked about her time there was Pietro, and he didn't seem like the type to go and tell the world what she shared.

    There had been one other question she had to ask Reed. "Why didn't you think that Medusa was right, that I just went and lashed out at Ronan for no reason?"

    He blinked in surprise. "I would say that we know you pretty well by this point. I can't imagine you just getting upset like that. And Sue had her suspicions from when you couldn't come and visit with us, so there was that as well."

    "I thought that you might go and tell me to go back. To do my duty." Crystal felt strange speaking what she had thought, given how for so long she had kept those thoughts to herself.

    "The most important duty you have is to yourself." The words didn't sound like something Reed would normally say, and when he added “Sue told me that before I came today. She wanted you to remember that.”

    After so long having the importance of duty pressed on her, Crystal just nodded and tried to take in the words as best she could.

    He left her the pills and took a few vials of her blood to perform the necessary testing. The brief encounter gave her a feeling of freedom. Now, she could truly go wherever she wanted. And the first place Crystal wanted to go was what now had been repaired from the ruins of the mansion.

    She asked Dane as they were leaving, "Who else is going to be there today?"

    "Besides me, we've got Greer, Carol, Monica, Scott, and Tony."

    None of the people who were going to there were all that familiar to her, save for Tony and Crystal only could say that she knew him in an abstract sense. Then again, part of the whole point of them working on the mansion together instead of just hiring people to do it was to make more connections between teammates. It was hopefully going to work out. "About how much have they gotten done so far?"

    "The foundation's pretty much been set, and we have the framework in place. There's still a lot of planning into what exactly we want to do for the layout, and of course Steve and Tony haven't really gotten into who's going to be on the team yet. Based on what Bonita's said, she's going to be one of the members but the rest is up in the air."

_I could be one of them._ It was the very first thing that jumped into Crystal's mind. In the past she hadn't ever thought about rejoining the Avengers except in idle fantasy. Yet she had known for so long that the days she had spent on the team had been some of the best in her life. She had only been a member for a brief time, so even though the chance to join once more lay before her it wasn't likely she would be able to take advantage of the opportunity.

    She asked Dane "Do the same people come on the same days, or are things mixed up a bit?"

    Dane answered with "It's different each time. We always have one of the major leaders around - either Jan, Steve, or Tony. Last time I was working I had T'Challa, Walter, Magdalene, Angelica, and Steve. Monica's the only one who's the same this time around. It was a bit odd at first, having to work with all these people I only know from brief encounters. But it makes sense after all that's happened. Part of why we ended up in the mess we were in before was that we couldn't communicate with each other effectively. How different might things have gone if Philip and Magdalene felt like they could go and talk to us about their feelings earlier?”

    Crystal hoped that at some point she would get the chance to speak with Magdalene and Philip. They had been among the only ones who didn't believe that Wanda had lost her mind, and if they hadn't gone looking into things then there might have been no way of putting the pieces together. “I can understand how that is. I've felt like the Avengers might not want me to come around after I left them hanging after the first attack.”

    Dane smiled and said “I think that the reception you're going to get is going to be a good one.”

    She hoped that they would be the first ones there, just so she could have a chance to get herself together before meeting her teammates again. But Greer and Scott had beaten them to the punch, and Greer went over to Crystal with a delighted “I'm so glad to see you here! When Jan told me you couldn't come and help us with the Sentry or the mansion, and then when I heard what was going on in your life, I started to get worried. I've seen enough of those signs before, believe me.” She shook her head and sighed.

    “I've almost been expecting people to tell me to go back and face Ronan again. That's what's best for the Inhumans, and it's the responsible thing to do.” Crystal kept on saying how wrong it was to leave because there was a part of her that still felt guilty about running off like she had. Maybe if she hadn't fought with Ronan things wouldn't have gone the way they did.

    Greer laughed a sarcastic chuckle. “If you did say you were going back I would be the first to stand in your way and tell you to stop. Look at the facts. Ronan's already telling you to stay away from your friends, and he's keeping you from your daughter. Someone who does things like that isn't going to stop there. It's only going to get worse, and I don't want to hear Pietro telling us one day that you never are going to be able to come back to us. I've seen too many people in my days with the police not leave their partners until it was too late for any action.”

    The confidence in her friend's words gave her the courage to whisper “He said he wasn't going to wait for the wedding night.”

    She said nothing, merely wrapped her arms around Crystal. They stood there for a few moments before breaking apart. Greer said simply “Don't go back.”

    “I won't. Not unless I'm forced to.” If only there was a way to make sure that would never happen.

    Dane and Scott had stood aside as they spoke, and now that Greer had backed away Scott said “It's nice to get a chance to really get to know you, Crystal. I'm glad you're here.”

    The next question was asked by Dane. “How are things going for you, Scott?”

    “Well, this weekend Cassie is going out on her first date. And I'm still trying to deal with it.”

    Curious, Crystal asked “Do you not like whoever she's going out with?”

    He shook his head and said “No, I've met Miles. He's a great guy, likes art and science. But seeing your daughter start to go out on dates? It's a reminder that the time has gone by so fast, and soon she'll be an adult. I'm not sure I'm ready for that yet.”

    The idea that someday Luna was going to be doing the same things that Cassie was now doing made Crystal understand Scott's feelings on the matter. “I hope that by the time Luna gets to that age she's going to be speaking to me again.”

    “She's still upset over having to leave, I guess.”

    “Yes. Not that I can blame her. When I was first told that I needed to send her to live with Pietro I should have told Medusa I wanted out of the marriage. But I didn't listen to my instincts. Now I've lost everything.”

    Scott asked “Are you sure that Luna's never going to forgive you? That seems a bit extreme to me. It's not like you've abandoned her for years and years without a single word. Pietro did say you were calling and trying to speak to her. Maybe if you have a meeting in person things might get easier.”

    “But that wasn't what happened when Cassie met her mother after all that time, was it?” She wanted to believe that just by going and speaking to her daughter in person everything would then be fine. But as much as she wanted that to happen, the chances weren't very good.

    There was a brief flash and then Monica made her entrance. “Crystal! This is a surprise. I thought that you weren't going to be able to work with us because of your marriage. What happened?”

    “Things got out of control. I knew I couldn't go through with it.” Having to once again tell the story felt like an impossible thing. At some point Crystal knew she was going to have to say the actual words for what had nearly happened, and if she avoided telling the story then the chances of having to say it remained small.

    Monica seemed to understand, and did not respond. Scott went ahead and started talking like they hadn't had an interruption. “What happened with Maggie and Cassie is completely different than what happened with Luna. To start with, you didn't just go and walk away one day – you were told that if you wanted to do right by your people you had to send your daughter to her father. Also, you tried to stay in touch with Luna. Cassie never got so much as a letter from her mother for all the years they were apart. Finally, you aren't going to go over and expect her to welcome you with open arms. I still think that if Maggie had just tried to get to know Cassie gradually instead of seeking out full custody right away they might have had a chance at building a relationship.” He sighed.

    Monica asked “Has there been anything on when you're going back to court?”

    “No, and things might get complicated even more if some of the ideas I have get put in place. I'm still not sure of what's going to happen in the long run, or if it'll cause any additional problems in the case. My lawyer did say that my status as a member of the Avengers shouldn't mean as much as how I've cared for Cass in the past, but who knows how this will affect things?”

    Dane said “What ideas are we talking about?”

    He smiled and said “Top-secret information. I can't tell you much more than that.”

    “Great! Everyone's here.” The voice of Tony Stark echoed through the grounds. They all turned around to see him and Carol standing there, and he went on to say “It's a good thing that you're here today, Crystal, because I wanted to see us get started on something new and I think you'd be a good person to help us out in getting started.”

    “Right, you said something about a new thing the last time I saw you,” Monica said. “So what are we doing now?”

    “Follow me.”

    Tony led them over to an area of the yard that hadn't had any work done. There was a tree in the area, but Crystal couldn't guess what might be going on there. “So what is it?”

    He said “This is where the new garden is going to be. With what ended up happening with Bob, I got to thinking about how it's important to remember the past. So this whole space is going to be dedicated to the people we've lost along the way – Mar-Vell, Bobbi, even those like Duane who weren't members but still came to be part of us. I thought about some kind of plaque at first, but that just didn't feel right. The garden is a living thing, and I think that the best way to remember those who've died is to have something alive.”

    Everyone was silent for a moment. Monica broke the silence by saying “When you put it like that it makes me wonder why we never did something like that before.”

    Dane replied “Sometimes you don't want to have to deal with all the feelings you have when you lose someone. I know that if I ever went and tried to bring up something about Bobbi to Clint he would either brush me off or get upset. I'd guess that there was also the fact that no one could say they knew everyone that we lost along the way. It feels out of place to mark the loss of someone who you really didn't know all that well. But that's something that's going to be changing from now on, so it then makes sense for us to honor anyone who was part of the Avengers no matter how long they might have been there.”

    This was something Crystal knew she wanted to work on. A large weakness of living in Attilan was that it was nearly impossible to go and find anything that was growing. Pietro had once said that they should go camping so that she could see all the greenery her heart desired, but they'd never gotten around to doing so. Maybe she could bring it up to someone once she knew she was safe.

    Tony then asked her “Since you haven't been able to be with us for all of the beginning work, I was thinking that you could start helping me out with this. We can go over some things to put in, see which ones will work best to honor everyone.”

    It was the perfect way to ease into things. “I'll be glad to help out. I wish I could have come sooner.”

    “It wasn't like you had a real choice in the matter. If you did, I know that you would have been there as soon as Jan got in touch with you.” He switched the subject. “It's nice to see you wearing the old jacket. You were one of the few people who could pull it off. Can you imagine what it would have been like if Rhodey or I had been on the team when Jan brought those out?”

    Monica laughed and added “Hey, if I'd been there I probably would have just conveniently had it get vaporized when I next transformed or something like that. In my civilian clothes it might have worked out, but when I'm working? No way.”

    Carol said “Hey, it couldn't be all that much worse than the first thing I wore when I got started in the business.”

    Scott raised an eyebrow. “This I have to see.”

    Tony said “You know, this could be a really good idea for a party. Everyone comes in whatever their first costume was. The one that makes the most people laugh is the winner.”

    “Well, that won't be me, since my armor is the only thing I've ever worn. My money would be on Luke. I asked him about that the last time we were together and all he could say was that it had seemed like a good idea at the time.”

    Tony shook his head and told Dane “Then you clearly have never seen T'Challa's or mine. They would definitely be in the running. I have to show you the specs from the earliest versions of Iron Man.”

    And as laughter spread among those present, Crystal whispered to herself “I've come home.”

* * *

 

    It had been far too long since Ronan had been told that Crystal had left Attilan for Earth. He had first thought that the matter would be quickly resolved, and he then would be able to show his foolish bride the price of disobeying him. Yet Medusa had still not contacted him with any news, whether it be good or bad.

    Ronan hadn't thought all that much of Crystal until the idea of marrying her came up. She was not of his people, a strike against her that normally would not have been tolerated, but she was certainly attractive and could perhaps be molded into a fine mate. But he had learned that she was constantly defying him, going behind his back to speak with her ex. Why hadn't she been forbidden from speaking to the man once their relationship was over? Ronan knew that was what he would have done. How many times might that man have spent in Crystal's arms with none the wiser? The child may have made things different, but thankfully she was gone now. He would have asked for her to stay away from the even if there was no Pietro around, because there was something about her that made Ronan feel she could see inside him. And the way she had spoken to him, like they were equals! He smiled as he thought of how he had gotten a tinge of pleasure over ordering Crystal to send her child away. She hadn't given in right away, but that just made her surrender later on even more fun.

    If she had been Kree, then Ronan knew he would handle things very differently. In that case Crystal would be someone who he could work with, someone who could lead and take charge. Her being an Inhuman made him want to keep her under a firmer level of control than would be needed otherwise, but it was the way she sought out humans that led Ronan to know it was not going to be enough to simply wed her. He needed to possess her, to crush her will so that she could be the kind of wife that he wanted. He wanted to have Crystal: mind, body, and soul.

    Finally, he received a message from Medusa asking to speak with him. Ronan was glad when he heard her voice. The next thing he wanted to do was get Crystal to where he was, and from there make certain she did not ever entertain the idea of defying him ever again. “Have you been able to get her to come back?” was the first thing he said. It was not the best choice of words, but he hoped he could smooth things over as soon as possible.

    “Unfortunately, when I spoke with Sue she informed me that she had not seen Crystal, and had no idea of where she might have gone.” Medusa did not sound as apologetic as she had in the past, and Ronan cursed his hasty statement earlier.

    “Then I will be heading to Earth as soon as possible. This foolishness must end.”

    “I would strongly advise against doing so. Crystal is already upset enough, and if you go running after her then she will be more likely to run in the future. I feel the best course of action is to wait for her to reach out to someone and proceed from there.”

    He pushed back his rage upon hearing Medusa speak so casually about not going after her sister. “Then what of the planned alliance? Why are you now going and tolerating such behavior from Crystal? Am I to understand that you do not care if she runs from her responsibilities to her people forever? May I ask what Black Bolt thinks about this whole situation?”

    “Part of the reason I am suggesting we take things a bit slower is because of the talk I had with him about what's been happening. I think that while it is correct that Crystal reacted badly in large part due to things being unsettled, it is also making things worse by forcing her to undergo so many changes in such a short period of time. If she needs time to think things over, then I don't feel it's right to disrupt that. I will update you as soon as Crystal speaks to me or someone else reaches out on her behalf.”

    Ronan could tell that Medusa was not sharing everything with him. Either she knew where Crystal was or she had figured out that there was more to her running than just a dispute over the wedding. “So you are going to reward her for throwing a fit.”

    Medusa was clearly not happy as she said “I will do no such thing. Can you really say that being forced to leave your home and hide is a reward of any sort? I have been paying too much attention to what will best serve you and your people, and not enough to what Crystal might need or want. That is going to change from this point onward.”

    This may have seemed like a perfectly reasonable thing to Medusa, but for Ronan it was the worst case scenario. “I cannot approve of this. If you do not agree to take more aggressive action, then I will be going to Earth to find her and take her back to my home.”

    Medusa retorted with “If you do that, then I am going to reconsider the very idea of the marriage.”

    “If you do that, then the alliance is going to be cancelled.”

    “Perhaps that might not be such a terrible thing, if going forward with the deal means completely disregarding Crystal's feelings.” The next question Medusa asked was “Ronan, what really happened when Crystal lashed out at you?”

    “I have told you all you need to know.” It was pointless to continue and try to establish his innocence now. If Medusa had still believed the story he told, then she wouldn't have asked any further questions.

    “I see. Then if you do not choose to tell me the whole story, then I believe that it may be time to reconsider the arrangements we have been making.”

    “Try and do so. I will make certain that everyone around you is well aware of how weak your people are. And how do you think that others will react when they learn of how you were so willing to go back on a deal you made?”

    Ronan hoped his words would make Medusa rethink backing out of the deal. But all she said was “If this is how you are going to respond, then I think it's for the best if we do not go forward with any arrangements with the Kree after all.”

    She then ended their conversation, and Ronan was left burning with rage. That bitch must have gone and told her sister everything. If he had the power to wage war on the Inhumans he would have done so right away. Yet that was not a viable option at the moment, so instead he plotted his actions against Crystal instead.

    The first thing to do would be to travel to Earth, and from there see where his future wife might be hiding. Her former spouse was the first choice, although Ronan did not wish to commit himself too closely to that idea. Crystal could very well be anywhere. But no matter where it was she found herself, he was going to find her and take her back to his home.

    Laughing at how much she was going to regret crossing him, Ronan began to plan his departure.

 


	9. I Think She Likes Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inside the head of Stephen Strange is not a happy place to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In "things that surprise me", learning that a player on your favorite team has a first name that is comics-based has to rank up there.
> 
> Warnings: Allusions to self-harm, dubiously consensual sex (while Stephen certainly went into things this time thinking he wanted it, he's under the influence enough that his consent may not be as valid as it otherwise might be).

    The bar was pretty much a clone of dozens of others like it in New York – a place where people would go to get a few drinks with friends, chat, and sometimes watch sports. It was one of the places that Stephen liked to go, and this was not because he enjoyed the company or the drinks. There wasn't all that much he did enjoy nowadays. He went to this bar mainly because it was close by, and there were always people you could find who might be interested in something more there.

    Stephen once again tried to shove away the crushing blackness that seemed to haunt his every waking moment. Yes, he deserved to feel like he was worthless, but he never could escape his own selfish nature and wanted for just a little while to get away from the pain.

    He went inside, glancing around to see if anyone he knew from his professional life might be there. Typically he was careful to choose places that weren't frequented by heroes but there always was the chance that someone could turn up. The shame he felt at having anyone figure out that he was a drunk just added to the misery that dominated his life now. (There was also the chance that someone he had met in the past at the same establishment might be there, but that didn't seem quite as terrible as someone who actually knew him being present.)

    Making his way over to the bar itself, Stephen reflected on how most people would be going out to drink if they had either experienced something bad that day or if they were choosing to celebrate some victory. He had been successful in his most recent mission, but it wasn't celebration that brought him here.

    It was  _praise._

    Everything had gone as well as Stephen had hoped. His magic had worked much of the time, and he'd only needed to have a few drinks to make sure it stayed that way. And when it was all over, he'd hoped to leave without much fanfare. But someone had said to him “Thank you for coming here. I can tell that you're a wonderful person since you put your life on the line for us.” And that was when Stephen knew he was going to be heading out that night.

    A wonderful person. Maybe if you like selfish bastards who thought they were the greatest thing since sliced bread and were drunks to boot. Even then he would still have a ways to go before coming close to wonderful.

    More days than not lately he wondered if things would have been better if he had just been left to freeze instead of being taken in and taught magic. But when Stephen's mind went in that direction, he then castigated himself by thinking of all the things he had done to help the world since then. What might have happened if he hadn't been there? His being miserable was just something he needed to live with for now.

    Thinking about the past caused Stephen's mind to wander. He thought about how he had expected to find something that would fix his hands when he went traveling all those years ago, and had ended up finding a new path in his life. And a little something more... but that wasn't something he could allow himself to think about right now. At times he even went back far enough to think about another bar many years ago, and how careless he had been. 

    Getting a few drinks was something that always ended up happening when Stephen went out to a bar, although that was never his main intent in doing so. What he wanted was someone to spend time with, who might be able to take away some of the blackness that haunted him for a few hours. The combination of sex and alcohol was as close as he ever got to something good anymore. The next day he normally ended up feeling worse than before, but Stephen knew that if going out like this kept his magic going for a bit longer then it was his only choice.

    He tried not to think about how lately it was taking more and more alcohol to carry out even basic spells, and what might happen if that was no longer enough. The threat of the ever-crushing blackness taking hold of him completely was still something that was frightening, even if he deserved to be taken in by it.

    The man who was sitting at the far end of the bar looked familiar. Stephen thought he might have picked him up at some point in the past, but his own memories of that night were blurry at best. He could vaguely recall something about his scars and knew he had been aching a bit the next day. Whether it was due to more rigorous than normal activity or something he'd asked for he couldn't remember. He wasn't sure if he really cared, either.

    There had once been a time when these visits didn't need to happen so often. Not while he had been married, of course – then he'd never gone out at all. It was a slight point in his favor that he did place importance on being faithful, and he did try and make sure that anyone he picked up was single. How successful he was at doing so he never knew. Maybe it was better not knowing. The time when Stephen had been able to stay where he was and drink only at home had been not that long ago, when he'd managed to get a small taste of what he really wanted. When he'd first heard the words about how the two of them were both lonely and it might help to ease a little bit of that feeling it had taken Stephen all of his might to keep from blurting out the words “I love you.”

    What he had said was “I don't want this to cause any problems between us later on.”

    Wong had only shrugged and responded with “We're both mature adults. I think that we can handle the consequences of whatever comes up.”

    It sounded so reasonable, but Stephen had known that he couldn't trust his feelings to remain under wraps for very long. But the prospect of getting even a taste of what he wanted so badly wasn't something he could pass up. It was just another way his selfish nature reared its head.

    He did try and make sure that he did not make their encounters about himself. His focus whenever they did go to bed together was entirely on Wong and his own pleasure, not caring if he was satisfied or if he even felt pleasure at all. There had been one problem with this: at one point Wong had remarked to Stephen, “You know, most of the time both parties are expected to be getting something out of sex. Is there something else you'd like me to try?”

    He'd tried to get away from the topic by going and pulling his friend in for a kiss, but Wong had been persistent. At last he had said “I don't want to be too demanding.”

    “I can safely say you haven't shown even the slightest sign of being demanding. I just want to make you feel happy.”

    The guilt from those words ate at Stephen's soul. He apologized and promised to do better in the future, but that didn't seem to make Wong feel any better. He wished that there was a way for him to fix things. Some days it felt like everything he touched turned rotten. Stephen ended up sending Wong some flowers as a way of saying sorry, but he didn't include any note. He didn't know if his words would betray his carefully guarded feelings.

    Time had gone by, and Stephen had found himself falling more in love than he had thought he could. There was no way that he was going to ever say anything about that little problem to Wong. He understood what it was they had, and it wasn't anything serious. Wong made no statements about what he thought, and Stephen knew that if he did feel something more it would have come out. Everything would have gone on the way it had been if it hadn't been for his stupidity of nearly a year ago.

    Like it always was, it had been Stephen's fault. It was a somewhat small mistake in the grand scheme of things, but he still hated to have messed up during the performance of his duties. His being out of sorts had not gone unnoticed by Wong, who had offered to give him a massage to ease the stress. Stephen had wished he said no – he'd perfectly well knew where this was going to lead.

    And it was a hell of a time to start expressing any ideas about what he might want in bed.

    He'd known that he needed to suffer for his failure. Stephen wasn't really the type of person who enjoyed that sort of thing in bed, but he also knew that tenderness was the worst thing for him at the time. He wanted to suffer, to be reminded about what sort of man he really was. And he hadn't thought about what Wong might think of being asked to do that.

    His requests had been greeted with a rather strange expression, and finally Wong had said “It might be best if we didn't do that.” The guilt that Stephen had felt had been more crushing than he had ever felt before – what kind of man was he that he was asking for something so horrible? How could his friend even look him in the eyes after all this?

    All he had been able to say was “I'm sorry, I'm sorry,” over and over again. While Stephen spoke, the man he loved just wrapped him in his arms, which only made him feel worse. When Wong had removed himself and left the room, Stephen went on to do something that he never really did: go out and disappear for a few days while drinking himself into a stupor. Not that he'd never ended up consuming the same amount that he did during the same period of time, but normally he would stay home to do so. There was also the wrinkle of not really being able to remember anything about what had happened during the days he was gone. Stephen had some flashes of what he'd done – a stranger rubbing his hand on his leg (which brought up some past memories he firmly pushed down on), sharing a bottle of wine with someone in a small room, and being struck in the face – but the first real thing he could think of that was solid was waking up in his bed almost five days later. There were bruises that he couldn't place, and Stephen still wasn't sure if he had been able to drag himself home unassisted or if he had help.

    Thinking about his lack of memories then brought his thoughts to Wanda. He still couldn't recall what he had said to the Avengers when he had shown up during the attack on the mansion. Stephen knew he had said something about Wanda and her magic, and that it had been enough to cause the team to turn on her. At least something good had come out of that mess, but the way she had been blamed caused him to add yet another check in the box for carrying out the Plan. He still couldn't believe Wanda wanted anything to do with him after she had been cast aside on his say-so. He'd half-expected her to come and castigate him for thinking so little of her that her friendly reaction had been even more painful that her condemnation might have been.

    Too much pain in all that. Stephen sat down and ordered himself a scotch on the rocks. It wasn't his favorite type of alcohol, but he had grown less picky over the years. The period of time when his stash of drinks had kept vanishing had taken away a lot of his particularness. He'd cared even less about what went down his throat during the time between his accident and his new life as the main factor then had been how cheap it was.

    (Stephen knew that Wong had been the one who had been taking away his bottles then, and he couldn't understand why he hadn't gone and yelled at him for being a worthless drunk instead of just taking the alcohol away. He'd wanted to honor what Wong was trying to do by staying away from the booze for a little while, but in the end the need to kill some of the blackness was just too much.)

    “Hi there.” A woman's voice broke into his thoughts. “What brings you in tonight?”

    This made things easier. The usual course of events when Stephen went out was he would get himself some drinks and then go looking for someone he might want. There was a chance that this wasn't going to be someone he wanted to go be with, and since Stephen wasn't too drunk to care he had to at least put some thought into it.

    Thankfully, she seemed to be alright. There wasn't any signs of a ring on her finger, so the biggest obstacle towards anything happening was gone. Stephen did his best to give a convincing smile and said “Just having a few drinks.”

    She smiled in response, and said “Well, let me buy you something. What do you like?”

    The correct answer would have been “nothing.” What he did say was “Depends on what you want.”

    A laugh. “Oh, that sounds good. I'll just get you my favorite.” She ordered some kind of mixed drink that Stephen wasn't really familiar with (he preferred his drinks straight up), but he didn't refuse to take it.

    Her face did scrunch up a bit when she looked at his hands. The weather wasn't the sort for wearing gloves, but showing off his hands in public was probably going to go over even worse than just resorting to keeping them covered. The tremor that was always present did normally draw attention, and Stephen knew people likely thought that the reason was due to alcohol. He doubted that most of them would believe it if he were to tell the truth and say that the two were completely unrelated. (Almost.)

    Scars were something that most people who embarked on a heroic career learned to deal with. Unless you had really strong skin or could heal yourself, you were going to get hurt at some point. Attitudes towards scars varied. Most of the people who got them weren't embarrassed by their presence, but weren't going to rush out to show them to the world. Stephen did not think of himself as being all that different from anyone else in that regard.

    What was different for Stephen was in how he categorized his scars. The first category was for his shameful scars. The ones on his hands had come about purely due to his own stupidity. How idiotic did you have to be to know that if you were having problems walking in a straight line that it might not be a good idea to get behind the wheel of a car? No one had really brought that up at the time, and by now no one was left who either knew or cared. These scars were the ones he never wanted anyone to see, and even with the few people who cared about him Stephen kept them hidden.

    The second grouping was the one that was the more common among heroes. These scars came from the various missions Stephen had undertaken, and his reaction to them was more mixed. He still felt uncomfortable with showing them to people, because no matter how you put it scars weren't something that were nice to see. There had been a few times when whoever he was sleeping with had given him a disgusted look when they saw the marks that could be seen all over his body, so these were also better off being concealed.

    The last group was the only one he felt any different about. These were  _his_ scars. The only reason they were there was because of his own choices, and while most people who saw them didn't treat them all that differently than any of the other ones Stephen had a warped sense of pride over their presence. Inked on his skin was evidence of the type of man he was, and the pain was just a fraction of what he deserved to get.

    The woman didn't say anything as he finished his drink. When she broke the silence, she asked “So why is someone like you having to come out here looking for some fun? You look good enough, so why don't you have anybody at home to take care of things with you?”

    “I'm divorced,” was what Stephen said. The words were clumsy, but he thought it was an effort to make sure that he was actually single and not just looking for a bit on the side. She glanced to see if she could see a ring on his finger, but the gloves made that impossible. “It was my fault that things ended, in case you want to know.”

    It didn't seem to make much of a difference, judging by her expression. All that she said was “Do you want to get a round together?”

    “Why not?” was his answer. He was in love with someone who was never going to feel the same way, screwed up virtually everything he touched, and was a drunk who spent most of his days feeling miserable. If somehow the combination of alcohol and sex gave him a small taste of what might be pleasure, then how much worse could things get?

    And as they drank, and eventually left together, Stephen thought  _Maybe this time it'll be enough..._

* * *

 

    Pietro hadn't known what he should do for when Crystal came over. He wanted to ask her more about what Ronan had done to cause her to run, but also didn't want to violate her privacy. He still tried to think of what to say and how to handle Luna and her feelings towards her mother.

    Luna had finally agreed to at least be present for the visit, although Pietro thought this was more due to Lockjaw coming with Crystal than anything else. At least the dog would serve as an ice-breaker for all of them.

    There was a flash, and Crystal was finally standing before him. She was wearing her old Avengers jacket, which caused Pietro to give a small grin at the memories it brought up. Lockjaw took a look around and promptly ran over to give Luna kisses. “Pietro. It's been a while.” She looked to be somewhat uncomfortable herself, which made him feel a little better about what was happening. “How have you been?”

    “Well enough. With the work on the mansion and planning for what's going to happen with Luna this fall there's been a lot on my plate.” He chose to leave out the parts where he had been thinking about her and how much trouble she might be in.

    “Right, I remember when we were talking about school. Have you made any decision as to where Luna should be going?”

    Luna was the one to give the answer, although she did so without looking in Crystal's direction or acknowledging she was there. “Well, I had to go and take a whole lot of tests, because Uncle Hank says they need to know how much I know already and where they can put me in school.” She put her hands on Lockjaw's head and went on to say “It's going to be fun going to school just like everybody else, even if there aren't going to be a whole lot of kids my age. Aunt Wanda says that she thinks Billy and Tommy are going to be going with me in the fall. So I'll know at least somebody there, besides my teachers.”

    “Oh, so you'll be going to Xavier's? I can see why you chose there. There are too many problems in a regular school, and even if you aren't a mutant it's still better to be around people who have some understanding of the troubles you have when your parents have powers.” Pietro wasn't sure if Crystal was speaking to him or to Luna. She could have just been covering all of her bases. The next thing she said was much more clearly for him. “I wish that I could see Wanda and Vision again. I know that they aren't feeling very kindly towards the Avengers right now, but it's been too long since I've spoken with either one of them.”

    He tried to wave aside her worries. “They aren't going to think any less of you. You're not an Avenger to Vision and Wanda. You're family. And I know that they're going to want you to get to know your nephews again.”

    Crystal shook her head. “I don't think that I really qualify as being family anymore.”

    “That's absurd. Of course you're still family. I spoke with Wanda yesterday, and she told me that she would love to have you come visit them.”

    She looked down at her hands. “Where are Vision and her staying?”

    “With Martha for the time being. The overall plan is to go back to their old home and see what happens next. Wanda's working on her magic, but I haven't gotten all that many details on how that's going for her.” Pietro knew there was something wrong there, and he could recall Wanda's words about Stephen being troubled. If only he knew more about the situation, just enough to understand all that might be occurring.

    Crystal nodded. “I guess you're wondering about why I'm here.” She was now looking directly at him, and then went on to say. “I knew what I was seeing, what was happening. But I couldn't accept it.”

    Either Luna knew that it was a good idea for her to stick around, or she just didn't feel like being around her mother much longer. She asked “Dad, is it okay if I go outside and play with Lockjaw for a bit?”

    “That should be fine. Mom and I need to talk privately for a bit, anyway.” Pietro didn't ask her to go and say goodbye to Crystal as she left. It was enough that she had not said anything rude and had shown up at all.

    “Come on, then. Let's play fetch. And I can show you the rope toy I'm working on!” The project had come about shortly after Luna had come to Earth, and she had seen another person with a similar toy for their own dog. The available ones had all been far too small for Lockjaw to have a good chew session, so Luna had set out to make her own. As she was leaving, she looked at her mother and said “Thank you for coming to visit us.”

    Waiting until Luna had left the room to react, Crystal began to laugh. “At least she said something polite. I guess that's all I can hope for now.”

    “Try looking at it from the perspective of Luna actually speaking to you. Wasn't that something she said was never going to happen again?”

    “It wasn't like she was speaking to me as if I was her mother. I might as well have been a stranger to her. I don't know what I'll have to do to make things right again.” There was a long silence as Crystal seemed to be trying to gather her strength. “After we talked that last time, he destroyed my phone and told Medusa I wasn't putting in all the effort that was needed for our marriage to be successful. I never could bring myself to tell the whole story about what happened. A part of me thought that everyone was going to say it was my fault, that I should have known better than to keep on talking to you.”

    Hearing this much sent waves of emotion running through Pietro's soul. He was still surprised Crystal was able to share this much with him. “You should be able to talk to whoever you like. That's your choice, not anyone else's.”

    “It sounds so easy when you say it. But trying to put something like that into action is a lot harder than you might think. I knew that there was so much riding on the deal being made that I just told myself things were going to be alright. Greer told me when I saw her today that is never going to happen, that if someone's already doing things like Ronan was doing it's only going to get worse. And then I wonder why I ever thought differently.” She turned away. “He wanted me to come and spend time with him in his home. So that I could get used to being there. Where I wasn't going to do anything other than be his wife.” Crystal began to laugh and cry at the same time, clearly still trying to deal with the emotions inside her.

    If this had happened prior to their separation, then Pietro would have just gone and held her until she felt better. Now with their relationship having fallen to pieces he wasn't sure what the right thing to do was going to be. He waited to see what was going to happen next.

    Gathering herself together, Crystal responded with “Sorry. I guess this is all a little too much to handle right now.”

    “I understand.” It might be better if they went and changed the subject. “How were things today?”

    “Tony was putting one of his ideas in. We're going to be putting in a garden dedicated to all of those we've lost along the way. I want to work with it, since I've missed out on so much of the work that's already been done. I had an idea of my own after Tony explained what he wanted to us. I'd like to see us make the garden a real personal thing. Just planting a few things and putting in a plaque or two isn't really enough. We should have something that reflects the people we're going to honor. Out of all the one's we've lost, I knew Bobbi the best, and I spoke with Duane a few times. But that's not really enough to make a space for them. Jan might be able to send me to people who really did know something, and from there I want to try and show who they were before they died.”

    “I'm sure you could talk to Clint about Bobbi, but I don't know how much he'll tell you. Losing her hit him hard. Didn't Steve once bring up to him doing something to honor Mockingbird's memory, and all Clint said was 'She's gone. How is it going to make a difference?'”

    “I know that I've never heard him talk about her, and thinking about it made me realize how funny it is. Out of everyone who's lost someone on the team, the person who I've heard talk the most about what they lost was Wanda. And then when all of those things started happening...”

    If he wanted to keep on working with the team, he needed to keep the conversation away from the subject of what happened with Wanda. “Was it uncomfortable coming back after all this time?”

    “Not as much as I was first afraid of. Having Dane there might have made a difference, though. I also got a chance to talk to Monica for a while about what she regretted most about leaving the Avengers.”

    “What was it? Or is that too personal to share?”

    “It was about how she had been a leader for a little while, and how she made a big mistake. Afterwards it just felt easier to leave instead of trying to cope with have failed at such a big responsibility. She said 'You know what? I was wrong. Not about leaving the leadership, because after what went on I wasn't ready to be in charge for a bit. But leaving the team didn't make things better. If I'd stuck around and tried to learn from my mistakes, then I'm almost sure I would still be an active member today.' And hearing that was enough for me to go and talk about how much I missed the team. Before that I always thought that everyone who left had done so because they wanted to do something else or just circumstances made it impossible to go on. It reminds me of how little I actually knew about anyone I wasn't on the team with. That was probably the whole point of having us all work together, I think.”

    Pietro wished he knew of a way to take away some of the tension that Crystal appeared to be feeling. She was still looking around the room as if there was going to be something there she hadn't seen before. “How are you holding up in general?” was the eventual response he gave.

    A shrug. “Part of me still thinks that people are going to tell me to go back and do my duty. Not a big part, not anymore. It's still there, though. And I keep wondering if someone's going to do more than just call Sue and ask where I might be. Medusa did that, but according to Reed Sue wasn't having any of it. She said that you had called to talk about how worried you were about me.” Crystal smiled and said “It was a bit of a surprise. I thought that you would have been more upset with me.”

    “Why would I feel that way?” Even with the things that had gone on between the two of them, the whole mess with Ronan was not something he could imagine brushing off.

    “Why wouldn't you, with how we ended up? Most people aren't going to be feeling good feelings towards their exes, especially if things ended badly.”

    He'd seen quite a few people who had either broken up with a long-term partner or had gotten divorced during his life, but Pietro still couldn't imagine any of them being okay with potentially seeing their ex enter an abusive relationship, no matter how contentious said break-up might have been. He then tried to think of any instances of Inhuman couples breaking up, and realized he could think of none. The revelation gave him new insight into why Crystal might feel the way she did. “I wouldn't want to see someone being treated like that even if they happened to be my worst enemy.”

    Crystal asked “What was it that made you so worried about me? I know I didn't say anything about what was bothering me when we talked, so how did you know?”

    “When you didn't show up to help us out with Robert. That was a big one. Sending Luna off sent off a few red flags, but I didn't think as much of that as I should have. But when I heard him yelling at you over the phone when we last spoke that was when I knew how things were going to turn out. I didn't know how I was going to help until Wanda brought up talking to Sue. I hoped she would be able to get to speak with you, but that clearly didn't happen.”

    Crystal replied with “I wanted to go and catch up with Sue when she asked me to come. Then Ronan asked if Johnny would be there, and I couldn't say no. He was standing there when I talked to her and said I couldn't make it. That seemed to make him happy, for a little while at least.” She got up. “I probably shouldn't be wasting much more of your time.”

    Pietro would have been perfectly happy to have Crystal stay longer, but also knew that if she felt uneasy or just didn't want to be around him any longer then he just had to accept it. “Just let me know whenever you want to come by again. Hopefully next time you and Luna can actually speak a little.”

    Her face spoke of longing as Crystal said “I hope that you're right.”

* * *

 

    The woman looked over at Stephen with an expression of extreme annoyance on her face. “You are planning on getting out of here, right?”

    It had been the same song and dance as it had been so many times before. Each time Stephen hoped that just a little warmth from another person might do something to take away the darkness that surrounded him every day. Typically there was a few fleeting moments of pleasure and then the return of the blackness – and that was if he was lucky.

    Tonight hadn't shown any signs of what might happen later on. They'd gone back to the woman's home, and she'd offered Stephen some more drinks. He'd been more than happy to accept, and then after a little while they got down to what had been on both their minds since leaving the bar.

    She'd looked to be very interested until he got down to removing his shirt and gloves. Then her expression had changed to a rather disgusted one. Stephen wished there was something more he could do to cover up his various scars. He tried to ease the situation by saying “I can leave them on if that makes you more comfortable.”

    “Yeah, that'll be great.” And Stephen did his best to make her happy, to focus on the needs of his partner instead of what he might want. At least this time he was actually able to get something going. There were times when his own body did not want to go along with any kind of activity, and sometimes what he tried to do instead wasn't enough to make the person happy.

    At some point he said “You know, I haven't gotten your name.”

    She raised an eyebrow. “Where did you get the idea we were going to be on a first-name basis?”

    “No reason, just trying to be friendly.” It was just another thing that was wrong with him – what kind of person went and hopped into the bed of someone they didn't even know the name of?

    And now their time together was done. Stephen looked around the place to see if the reason she wanted him gone so fast was due to having someone else in her life that wouldn't be happy to come and find a stranger in their bed, but nothing pointed in that direction. Maybe he'd just not done enough to make her happy.

    Making his way out, Stephen tried to keep himself steady. He was at least able to stay upright, and hoped that once he got back to the Sanctum he wasn't going to go and pass out before he could get to his room or his study. The times that he hadn't been able to do so filled him with shame. He'd always ended up in his bed following those times, and the only way he could have gotten there was if Wong had gone and helped him out. Why hadn't he just left him there like the pathetic drunk he was?

    There was the sound of a train going by as Stephen left the home. Listening to the whoosh it made going on the tracks, Stephen thought about just going and throwing himself in its way. The train running him over would probably be a painful way to go out, and for a few moments he could imagine his body being cut into pieces and hopefully slowly bleeding to death.

    And almost as soon as he thought about it, he internally recoiled in disgust. Not only would he be leaving so many things left undone, he would be causing someone else pain by using them to cause his demise. Stephen once again reminded himself to keep in mind how the Plan was supposed to work. Only when nothing else would help was he to take that last step.

    Home at last. He noticed that there were no lights left on, which was a relief. If Wong had stayed up waiting for him to return there was always at least one light still burning. Stephen hated being the focus of so much concern, but the one time that he'd tried to push away his friend he'd been unable to deal with the disappointed look on his face.

    Wanda was supposed to be coming over again tomorrow, mostly to talk about the books she had been looking over. Stephen wished she was angry with him. He had caused the people closest to her to turn on her, so what made her still want to be his friend? Maybe it would have been different if he hadn't been so busy lately.

    Dragging himself into his study, Stephen rummaged through his desk until he pulled out the half-empty bottle of gin he'd left there a few days ago. He knew perfectly well that he'd already had too much, but the thoughts in his head were still teaming up with the blackness that lurked around him. So he went for the only solution he had, and waited for the inevitable result.

    Before he lost consciousness, Stephen thought to himself:  _Maybe this time I'll wind up choking on my own vomit._

 


	10. Sober

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Wanda realizes she does not know how she can help one of her closest friends, she must look to someone who knows better than anyone about Stephen's troubles.

    The new coat of paint that was now in the master bedroom made Wanda smile at the results of her hard work. After spending time cleaning out the place, both she and Vision had agreed that some touching up was necessary. Wanda had then opted to work on painting the bedrooms, while Vision was currently outside clearing away weeds and overgrowth that had crept into the yard over the years.

    Now she was thinking about the new furniture that was going to be coming in a few days. All of the things they hadn't taken to California had long ago either been sold or were so worn out that no one could count on them. So over the last few days she had been spending a lot of time either browsing through furniture stores or shopping online, looking for just the right pieces to bring in.

    It was a relief to not have to spend time worrying about how much you could afford to spend. Wanda had spent most of her childhood in a constant state of worry about whether or not the basics could be taken care of, and that was one of the reasons why she was still cautious over unnecessary expenses. Most of the time she only went all out for gifts during the holidays. It wasn't until recently that she'd gotten a chance to really review how much money she actually had, and the size of it shocked her. She'd known that the pay she got as an Avenger was far more than she had ever thought it was possible to have, but seeing it laid out still stunned Wanda. Vision had been even more conservative with his pay than she was, since he did not require the same basics most of the team did. All this meant even without being active members of the team it was going to be a long time before money was an issue.

    Vision came up through the floor and looked at her work. “I can see the difference already. It almost looks the way it did when we first moved in.”

    Wanda asked “What were the boys doing when you came in?”

    “They were pretending that the tall grass was a jungle, and they had to go and explore it. Billy has said that he wants to go and see Teddy again soon, but I explained that right now it was better if he and his mother had some time alone. I know that Anna is soon going to have her meeting with the asylum officer, and she's probably feeling the stress too much to cope with children running around.”

    “But she also might be feeling the isolation and want to have someone to talk to. I know you don't know her as well as I do, Vizh, but tomorrow when I go and see Stephen you might want to see if Anna's up for some company.”

    “I will speak with her and see how things turn out.” He asked “How do you think Stephen has been doing lately? Might there be any change from the last time you spoke?” Vision didn't sound very convinced of that, but Wanda thought he was trying to make her feel more optimistic.

    “I tend to doubt it. I hope that this time I can get him to open up a bit more.” There was a lot she wanted to talk about just from the books she had been reading. It was now a bit easier to understand why her magic might have caused others to think she would lose her mind. Crawford in particular seemed to spend a great deal of time talking about all the people who'd thought they could handle repeatedly using chaos magic without any form of consequences. The book was old enough that she wasn't mentioned at all, and it didn't seem like he knew of anyone who used chaos magic due to an inborn ability instead of a choice to study it. Ndiaye, in spite of being far more technical, had a great deal of insight into why exactly this was such a common occurrence. The more one tended to use chaos magic, the easier it became to keep on using it. _And while it must be said that there is no type of magic that is inherently wrong to use, chaos magic tends to become more dangerous over time due to the fact that more uses over time lead to the forces responsible for said magic gaining more and more influence over the person using it over time._ The whole passage sounded like a recap of what had happened with Robert Reynolds, and in a small way it made Wanda feel a measure of pity for the man.

    The book also had mentioned her in a small way, which gave her a bit of an awkward feeling. All that had been said was that her own powers might have a different course due to them being part of what Wanda would have been born with regardless of where she had been at the time. The author also stated that she was hopeful that further study of the magical arts would help to downplay any negative impacts the magic might have on her mind, and said her history with the Avengers showed positive signs that she was not going to break under the pressure of the forces employed.

    Reading all of this was one thing, but being able to talk about it with Stephen was another thing entirely. Wanda wondered what his opinion on the works was beyond Crawford being a good choice for a beginner. And if she was able to get him to open up about professional matters, then maybe it was going to open up a path for the more personal ones that were haunting him so badly.

    “Have Crystal and Pietro been able to speak since she came to Earth?” Vision asked. Both of them were relieved to hear about how she had fled her home. Following the failure of having Sue invite her to come and visit for a time, Wanda had feared the next bit of news concerning Crystal would be of her death.

    “She came to see him and Luna after working on the mansion yesterday. Pietro was surprised that Luna was able to be civil. He thought that she would say something unkind, but she just ignored her mother for the most part. I supposed it's a start. It's not easy to forgive someone for doing something that hurt you that much, even if they didn't have a choice in the matter.”

    Wanda didn't like thinking about how virtually the same could be said in regards to her and the rest of the Avengers. While she still counted Bonita as being a close friend, and was hoping to get to know Magdalene better, none of the people who she had counted on as friends for so many years felt like they could still be counted among those ranks. She didn't like what that said about her, but what did it say about her former teammates that they hadn't bothered to think of any reason why she was supposed to have done such terrible things? She wasn't sure if she still wanted to feel this way, but there was too much present for her to just forgive and forget.

    Vision said “You forgave me for having done far worse to you in the past. Luna needs more time to come to terms with why her mother had to do such a thing. I know that she has Pietro's stubbornness in her, but time is always a source of healing.”

    In the case of her own relationship with a parent, Wanda wasn't certain if time had made a real difference. She did try to be closer to her father, but the memories of how he had treated the two of them prior to learning who they really were were not pleasant ones. All she could think to do was nod, and hope that Luna would forgive her mother in time and her visit with Stephen was going to work out.

* * *

 

    Arriving at Stephen's this time around wasn't stressful in the same way that the previous visit had been. Now she knew that she wasn't going to be turned away it was easier to come over. And this time Wanda wasn't coming empty-handed, as she had made the choice to bring some food along with the books she was returning. It was only leftover spaghetti and meatballs from last night's dinner, but she hoped the gift might encourage Stephen to eat a little bit more. He had always been gracious in the past when accepting a gift, so perhaps it would help if food was offered in such a way.

    When Wong answered the door, she knew that her hopes of things being better were not going to come true. He looked tired (although not to the soul-deep level Stephen did), and said “I just wanted to let you know it was a bad night last night. So Stephen's a bit under the weather right now.”

    He didn't need to say much more about what “under the weather” really meant. They both knew it, and Wanda asked “When you say it was a bad night, what do you mean by that?” Those questions could make a difference in understanding how a situation was. She still remembered how at one point during one of the girls nights the team had Jan had mentioned Hank was having his old sleeping problems, but everyone had assumed she was talking about normal insomnia. What she had meant was that it had been three days since he had slept a wink, and was starting to talk in that rapid way he got before he started to mentally break down. Maybe asking more questions wouldn't have made a difference in the end, but not doing so had not helped any.

    “He went out to a bar last night. He only does that when things are worse than usual. I don't know what was the catalyst this time. The last time he went off on a mission things worked out well, so it wasn't because of some failing on his part. Unless Stephen felt like there was something more he could have done, but since he didn't say anything pointing in that direction. He's never been shy about telling me when he does something wrong. But...” He trailed off.

    “I'm going to try and see if I can get him to open up a little. I also brought some food as a gift. I hope that you like it.”

    Wong took the container from Wanda and said “It's a nice gesture, but I don't know if it'll get Stephen to have much. He'll feel guilty if he doesn't at least make an effort, but if he can't bring himself to eat too much he's going to feel even worse. I'll keep it around for a while and see if he responds.”

    There was one other thing she was wondering about. “Why did he end up going out? Wouldn't it be easier to just go and do his drinking at home?”

    “Because when he goes to a bar, drinking isn't his primary motivation.” What was the reason was left unsaid, although it wasn't too hard to read between the lines and guess why Stephen chose to go out.

    “Is he in his study?”

    “Yes. I think he spent the night there. At least when I went to bring him some breakfast he didn't look like he'd been to bed. So just be gentle with him. Stephen's had enough trouble for now.”

    Wanda hoped that she didn't look like she was going to say something negative or was planning on being too judgmental. “I'm sorry if you thought I was going to say something that might hurt Stephen. I can say I have no intentions of doing that.”

    Wong sighed and turned away. “I know, but seeing Stephen expect people to act like that leads me to wonder if it's going to be the case more often than not. I just wish I knew if there was someone else to talk to.”

    A name did come to mind, but she wasn't sure if he was going to want to deal with Stephen's troubles. They hardly knew each other, and it might serve to bring to mind the troubles he himself had in the past. “I understand you're under a lot of stress right now. So don't worry about it.” Wanda tried to give Wong an understanding smile before heading off to see Stephen.

    If for whatever reason she had not been told the previous night was a bad one Wanda would have known how things had gone from how Stephen looked. His clothing looked rumpled, and his eyes were bloodshot. But even with that he still was able to say “I'm glad you were able to come, Wanda. I know how busy you must be right now.” He rubbed his temples as best he could.

    There was a disturbing air of familiarity in Stephen's eyes. She'd seen something like that in her own face following her dark time, and on occasion Tony had shown something similar. If at any point soon he started to cry Wanda would not have been shocked. “How could I be too busy to come see one of my friends? How have you been?”

    She felt absurd even asking the question – anyone could tell Stephen had not been doing well. He hadn't appeared to have gained any weight, and she caught a glimpse of an empty bottle near his desk. “What I should be, I guess.”

    Smiling and trying to keep on a brave face, Wanda replied with “Then I hope that means everything is working in your favor and you're feeling great! Because I know that is what you should be.”

    She hadn't thought her words were going to make a big difference in Stephen's mood, but his reaction caught her off guard. His face fell, and he started to repeat “I'm sorry, I'm sorry” again and again. As he spoke, he winced and once again reached for his temples.

    “Stephen, do you want me to get something for your head?” He was in clear pain, and while a part of her wanted to say something about why this was the case she knew that it wasn't a good idea right now. Stephen already seemed like he was going to break to pieces and based on the little she knew about addiction that wasn't the time to start bringing up the topic.

    “It's fine. The pain... It's fine. I...” Stephen struggled to say whatever it was he wanted to say. “I'll be all right.”

    Since talking about this was doing no good, Wanda switched over towards a more neutral topic. “I've brought back the books I borrowed. You were right about Ndiaye being technical, although she also had good insights as to why so many people who use chaos magic come to such bad ends. Crawford was better for history, but he didn't go too in-depth into why things happened the way they did. I think I understand Robert a bit more now. Once he started to make changes, there was no going back unless he had gone and tried to learn more about where those powers of his were coming from.”

    He looked alarmed. “Oh, no. I've forgotten about going to see him. I need to try and see if I can get there once we're done today. I can't allow any potential risks to go unnoticed, not anymore.”

    “Don't worry about that. As far as I know nothing's really changed with him, and you probably aren't going to be able to find out much. I know that you've been doing a lot of important things and talking to someone who might not be able to tell you what you need to know isn't going to rank that high up on the list.” She continued to press the earlier point. “Please, just let me get you something for the pain. It would make me feel better, too.”

    Wanda thought it was the idea that taking something might make a difference for her was the only reason Stephen agreed. “If it means that much to you. But please don't worry about me so much. It makes me think I'm trying to manipulate you into feeling bad for me.”

    “I would never think that.” She looked in her bag to see if she'd brought anything with her, but found nothing. “Where do you keep some Advil or something?”

    “Wong keeps track of that sort of thing. You should ask him.” The mention of Wong made Wanda wonder why Stephen hadn't just asked him earlier on for something if he had a headache. It could have been some way of denying that he had been drinking the night before, but anyone who looked at Stephen probably could have figured out he was hungover. It had to be because Stephen didn't want to cause trouble for anyone, even if all he needed was something simple.

    Wong must have planned for the occasion, since he handed over the pills to Wanda without any question. She wondered if he had tried to do the same earlier.

    He did take the medicine with any fuss, but that didn't feel all that much better. There was an overall expression of naked misery written in Stephen's face, and Wanda suddenly could see herself following the vanishing of her children. The pain she had felt then had been more than she thought any person could bear, and she shuddered to think of Stephen feeling the same way.

    She tried to talk more about the books she had read and get his opinion, but Stephen seemed to have problems focusing on what she said. At one point he began to yawn, and started to apologize for having done so. “I am interested in what you have to say, Wanda. I don't know what's wrong with me.”

    “How much sleep did you get last night? If you're yawning, then you just might be tired.”

    He shook his head. “I've gone for longer periods of time without sleep before. And I did get some rest last night.”

    Stephen was playing with words. Rest and sleep weren't the same thing, and Wanda knew that. “Well, a brief nap probably won't hurt much. We can talk some more later on.” She hoped that he would listen. There was no point in talking when he was in such a poor state of mind, and she was honestly starting to worry about how much good she was going to be able to do.

    “There's too much I need to be doing. I already sometimes can't do what I need to do, except with...” He blinked and shook his head. “What might happen if I don't pay attention to everything?”

    “If something important does come up, I'll be sure to tell you.” Neither one of them had noticed Wong standing in the doorway. “You've been doing more than enough lately. Why don't you just have a day where you can relax?”

    Stephen looked down at his feet. “If you must insist.” Raising his eyes towards Wong, he asked “Do you promise you'll come get me if anything comes up?”

    “I promise.” He went over to help Stephen to his feet. “Let's just put you to bed for a little bit.”

    Wanda was glad that Wong had more luck in talking to Stephen than she did. Maybe if she somehow could get him to fall in love with her as well it would be easier to get him to accept help – although the problems created by doing so would create would make things worse in the long run. She wasn't sure if she should accompany the two men, but Wong gave her a brief nod as she looked at them. So she followed.

    Stephen must have been even more tired than she had first thought, because it seemed like he had barely put his head down before his eyes shut. Wong pulled up a chair next to him and whispered to Wanda “It should be alright if you leave. I don't know how long it's been since he last got a real decent amount of sleep, so hopefully he'll stay out for a while. I'd keep the books for now – just say later on you didn't want to disturb him and had to get going.”

    Stephen still did not look to have shed the look of sadness on his face. The sight of that was the one that made Wanda realize  _I can't do this on my own, not even with Wong helping._ Wong was trying his best, but he had to cope with the way his master was falling to pieces every day. That stress made it harder to change things.

    There was only one person she felt like she could talk to and get some advice for how to go forward. She pulled out her phone and contemplated how only a few weeks ago she had thought she would never be speaking to him again. With a deep breath, Wanda said as soon as the first hello was spoken “Tony? This is Wanda. There's something I'd like to talk to you about.”

* * *

 

    The cafe wasn't one of the places Tony felt anonymous walking into. He knew that it was one of Wanda's favorite places to go, but he felt like he stuck out too much to be here. The conversation he was going to be having only served to make things worse. He shook his head and tried to think instead about how it meant a great deal that Wanda still was turning to him when she had problems that she could not handle. He had been telling the truth when he told Steve that he was used to being disliked by people, but he had to admit to himself that it never got much easier to see or hear it.

    For Wanda's part, she didn't look to be angry or to have that coldly neutral expression she'd borne the last time he saw her. She even gave him a genuine smile as he walked over to where she was sitting. “Tony, it's good to see you. How have you been?”

    Tony wonder how much about the work he'd been doing with the Avengers he could share. He said “I'd say as good as I can be. There's been a whole lot to do with the mansion and seeing if we can get together the old terms for the team. The whole legal what-to-do that came about when we broke up is more of a headache than I thought it might be. But I know we're going to get things going soon. I wish we'd started sooner.”

    She took in all that he was saying. “It's a good thing that the mansion is coming back together. I don't think that you can really have a team of Avengers without it.” She added “I heard about the garden you want to put in. I wish sometimes I had done something to honor Billy and Tommy when I lost them. I mean, it wouldn't have mattered in the end but there's something about having a place for your grief that's uniquely yours.”

    Tony added “Sometimes I did think about asking you if you'd like something to remember the twins by. But I never got around to asking you what you might think.” He clarified “It wasn't because of me thinking you were going to lose it if I did bring it up, though. I just wasn't sure if it was my place to deal with your grief.” He let the words sink in before going on to say. “I'm guessing I have a pretty good idea as to why you want to talk to me right now.”

    Wanda sighed. “I just have no idea what it is I should do in regards to Stephen. I haven't been able to say anything to him about how much I know he's been drinking, and I'm not even sure if I should. And I have no idea if all the sadness I'm seeing is directly connected to the drinking or not, which just makes me feel more confused. I'm just hoping you can give me some advice as to what my best course of action should be.”

    Tony's thoughts were going in more directions than he would have liked. On one hand he was honored that Wanda had thought of him when she needed help. But there was another part of him that felt terrible for being an option in the first place. Would she have wanted to go to him if he didn't have a drinking problem? And that didn't even take into account how difficult it was to hear that Stephen was so unhappy. Tony knew how having both issues could feed into each other and make resolution even more complicated, and dwelling on something of that nature sent him back to a dark place he didn't want to think about.

    “Let's start with something small. Have you gotten any indication that Stephen's trying to reach out for help with his drinking or anything else?”

    “Wong said that a while back he was going and seeing someone. But that didn't make a difference. He said in the end he just got worse.”

    “All right.” Tony tried to think of how best to put this. “Based on what you've said so far, I don't think that the best course of action is to confront Stephen about anything. It's not going to help him any.” He knew that this was probably going to sound surprising to Wanda, so he clarified with “Directly confronting someone with a substance abuse problem works best when they're in a position where they are ready to admit to their problem or can't get themselves to the point of seeking out help. And I think that if Stephen was at either of those points, you would know where to go in order to get outside support. Forcing someone into getting help is never as good as having them go ahead on their own.” He unfortunately could speak partially from experience. The first time he'd tried to jump on the wagon Tony had really thought that he was serious about doing so, but it hadn't worked out that way. Beth had given him the push he needed to go in the right direction, but Tony hadn't gone and taken all the measures he should have to keep his alcoholism under wraps. In hindsight it was easy to see that he was headed off the wagon at some point in the future, but Tony had really thought he licked his problem as long as he just didn't go and have anymore drinks. How he wished it had been that simple.

    Wanda soaked in what he was saying for a time. “I didn't think you were going to say that. I always thought the best thing to do with someone who was abusing alcohol was to go and let them know you couldn't support what they were doing any longer.”

    “That can help for the right person, but let me ask you something. What have you been doing to support Stephen's drinking in any way?”

    “I did go and give him something when I saw that he had a headache. And I didn't go and do anything when I found the bottles he had stored in the library. I've been wondering if I should have acted differently, even though Wong told me it was pointless to go and get rid of them. He said he tried doing that, but all it did was stress him out more.”

    “Giving someone something for a hangover isn't normally all that supportive of their addiction. The kinds of things you need to be worried about are when you start going and making excuses to other people for what they're doing. And honestly he might not have even been all that happy to take something. When I was drinking there was a part of me that liked being hungover, believe it or not.”

    Wanda shook her head. “I've only been hungover once in my whole life, and it was not a fun time. How come you liked being that way? What was going on in your mind?”

    Explaining this felt like Tony was going and peeling back part of his soul. “Not everyone feels the same way I did. I once tried to talk to Carol about it and she looked at me like I was nuts. But feeling so awful felt good in a way to me. It was like what I was feeling inside now was part of my whole body. The headaches, being sick to my stomach – I _deserved_ to feel like that. So I didn't actually look at being hungover as something that was desireable, but it went well with how my feelings were so much of the time.” It was harder to talk about this than it was to talk about all of the things he had done in the past while he was drinking. Shifting things to a degree, he asked “Can I ask why you didn't go and talk to Carol about this instead of me? I know that you're both friends, and she's easier to talk to than I am.”

    Wanda looked down at where her drink was sitting, mostly untouched. “I can't really talk to Carol, not anymore. I can still remember how she didn't ask any questions when everything was being put on me, and then I wondered what kind of a friend wouldn't even try to understand what was going on if something so major happened. And then there's just how Stephen's looked every time I've seen him since that day. The way his eyes looked today was just so – I've seen something like that with you a few times. I hope that didn't come across as being too rude.”

    It stung a bit for Tony to hear that Wanda couldn't really count on her old friend. He hadn't spoken to Carol all that much lately either, but he vowed to ask her how things were going when they did meet again. “Well, Carol's not going to understand fully what's going on here. She's not dual-diagnosis, so her own experiences aren't going to give her that much more insight into how Stephen is now.” Before he'd always called the man by his formal name, but with Wanda the personal one seemed to work better. (It probably was helped by the brief moment of solidarity he'd gotten the night he had lost his memory.)

    “Dual-diagnosis? What do you mean by that?”

    “Sorry, I forget sometimes other people don't have experience with the terms you use in recovery. Dual-diagnosis means that a person has some type of mental health issue along with their substance abuse problems. Depression's one of the big ones, but you see bipolar quite a lot as well. Judging by what I saw with Stephen that one time as well as what you're telling me, he probably falls under that umbrella.”

    Wanda asked “What exactly happened when you went to see Stephen that one time? When I tried to reach out to him while staying at Anna's I saw him sitting and crying, but that didn't give me any idea of how bad things were going. I blamed Robert for some of it, although when we finally fought he said he hadn't needed any help to ruin his mind.”

    “Well, how it all went down started with me trying to look into what had gone on earlier.” Tony hated going on about that time. How really could he talk to her about “the time we all decided you'd just gone nuts, and nobody seemed to want to look into why that might have been the case?” Pushing forward, he went on to say “I found something in a book discussing magical changes to one's personality that I thought made everything start to make sense, and then I knew I had to talk to somebody. Stephen was the only one who I could think of when I needed a listening ear, but when I talked to him he seemed a little off. Finally I heard him slurring a bit of his words, and then I could see all the other signs of him being drunk.” Tony paused, because the next part was almost too personal to share. “And then I started to think about other things, and how looking at him then felt like I was watching myself. But I kept saying in my head that just because I had a problem didn't mean everybody else did, and it really wasn't until you told me how you did get in touch with Stephen after what happened with the twins that I became certain he was an alcoholic like I am.” He then went on to ask “You said I was right when I asked if Stephen had a problem, but now you seem to be unaware of how bad things might be. How much did you know about what was going on?”

    “I'd seen Stephen looking so unhappy that I knew there was something seriously wrong. But I wasn't sure of what that might be. I did see signs earlier on that should have given me a few clues as to his alcoholism, like when I was pregnant and seeing him on a regular basis. Pretty much every time I met with him during the nighttime he had a drink or two, and during Thanksgiving he managed to finish off nearly an entire bottle of wine by himself. That was something I noticed, but he brushed me off when I spoke with him about that, just said it was nothing compared to what he was doing after his accident. I guess I should have guessed then, but...”

    “Honestly, that in and of itself isn't as much of a warning sign as you'd think. People can go and turn to abusing something when they're having a rough time, but it should have a limit and be tied into whatever's going on. If you really had suspicions based on what you heard the best thing to do would be to see if someone who knew him then saw any signs of trouble.”

    “That would be Wong, and he was the one who pretty much confirmed that Stephen had a drinking problem. He told me that he tried to do something about his drinking but all it did was stress him out. Now he says that he can't control how much he chooses to drink. He also told me that if something isn't done about the unhappiness Stephen's feeling at the same time his drinking is addressed then it's not going to work out.”

    “He's right.” Tony then started to wonder about something else. He opted to shift into it slowly. “And I'm going to tell you something else you might not hear from anyone: Stephen already knows that he has a problem. Once you get to a certain point it's almost impossible to not know that something is wrong, even if you don't think you you need to go all the way. The bigger question is what he thinks about his problem.”

    Wanda nodded, and was silent for a moment. She finally asked “Would it be rude if I asked what you thought about your own drinking problem? You don't have to answer me, but I was hoping that maybe I could use it to get through to Stephen better.”

    Tony hated to crush her hopes. “I honestly thought that the only thing that made me feel good was alcohol, and that if I gave it up then I couldn't ever feel even the slightest trace of good feelings. So when Steve came to me and asked me why I was throwing everything away for alcohol, all I could think of was how empty everything was going to be if I didn't have that one thing to keep me going. That was one of the reasons I couldn't accept help until I had nothing left.” He realized that there were a few tears in his eyes as he kept on talking. This was bringing out far too many memories he wanted to keep buried.

    Wanda looked to be quite upset herself. “I'm sorry that I reminded you of all that. I don't want to see Stephen get to that point before we can get him some help. But I'm afraid that there's not going to be a way to reach him before that.”

    If there was some magic words Tony knew of to pull Stephen Strange out of the abyss he was caught in, he would have shouted them from the rooftops. “So do you know if Wong's done anything to try and reach out to Stephen? Besides just going and taking away his drinks, I mean.”

    She shook her head. “I'm certain he has, but there's no way Stephen would go and accept it.”

    That sounded odd. “How do you know that for sure?”

    “You really don't know?” He shrugged, since he still knew virtually nothing about the other man. “Stephen's in love with him. He doesn't want to cause him any more trouble than he's already going through, at least that's what I can guess.”

    Suddenly a whole lot more about their dynamic made sense. “So is this one of those things where he's just not interested, or is Stephen just not capable of saying it?”

    “I think that Wong's just not choosing to think about whether or not Stephen's interested in him. I only found out by watching him and seeing the same look in his eyes I've seen in others who are in love. I've seen Vision looking at me the same way. It's a nice thing to see, if you know it's there.”

    He wished that he could say the same. So much of the time his efforts at finding someone special ended in disaster. “Yeah, if there are feelings like that there it's for the best if Wong doesn't go and do too much. The people you love can really help out if you need support while you're trying to enter recovery, but if you aren't ready for that it's just going to feel like you're failing them.” Tony thought about how even when things were falling apart at the seams Rhodey had done his best to lift him back up, and when he had been unable to stay standing it had made the turmoil in his mind even worse. Not only was he a drunk who had squandered all that had been given to him, he'd taken advantage of someone who he counted on as being close to him.

    The next thing he had to say was also something people normally didn't want to hear, but it had to be said if Wanda really wanted to help Stephen. “One other thing I think you should know: if you do get Stephen to accept help, then you also need to know that there's a chance he's going to slip up. Most people think that if you decide to get sober, then you are going to stay that way if you really want to change. But it's not that easy. The majority of addicted people are going to slip up at some point, and how you respond to that can make a big difference in what comes next. If Stephen slips up and he seems to feel guilty about it, it's not going to do any good if the reaction of everyone around him is to say what a horrible thing you've done. So try and think about how you're going to handle that if it comes up.” He really hoped that Wanda wasn't going to go and ask him if that meant he'd ever had messed up in the past. That was something that was far too raw to have to share with anyone save his closest friends.

    She did not go there. Instead what Wanda said was “You've given me a lot to think about. I hope that I can use some of it when I talk to Stephen next time. Oh, Tony?”

    “Yes?” She didn't sound like she was going to say anything too terrible, but a part of him still was waiting for her to lash out at the whole team in a way she hadn't before.

    “I hope that you know I still think of you as one of my friends, and however I feel towards the Avengers doesn't mean that I feel the same way towards you. I wish I'd been able to tell you that the last time we were together, but the threat was just too great to stop for a moment. I'll never forget you were still trying to find out what might have gone wrong, even when your mind was being manipulated. Thank you.”

    “I don't know if the thanks are warranted for that, but I'll accept it.” He got up. “If Stephen does start talking about how he wants to get help, then let me know. I can take him to a meeting if he wants.”

    “I'll be sure to tell you. I hope to see you around, Tony.”

    He wished he could say that Wanda's hopes would come true and Stephen would agree to reach out for help. But the way he'd seen himself in the man's eyes made that feel like a remote possibility. He only could hope that when Stephen did hit bottom, he didn't end up falling in the same way Tony himself had.

    And that when he did fall, it wasn't in such a way that getting up again would become an impossible task.

 


	11. Strange Currencies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Black Bolt thinks on what went wrong with Crystal, and wonders what could be done.
> 
> Meanwhile, Crystal is given an idea that just might keep her safe on Earth for the given future. But how possible is it to do?

    The general strain of thought by most people is that it is quite easy if you are a king to put forward your will. Most people wouldn't think that therefore it's easy to rule over a kingdom, but doing as you chose seems to be a very obvious outcome of being put in charge.

    Black Bolt only wished it was so easy. Maybe if things in his life had gone differently then he would have found leadership to be a much simpler thing than it turned out to be. From his voice to the people he had met along the way, changing the way your people looked at the world was not an easy task. He wondered if his own powers had not turned out to be as much of a curse as they were a blessing how things might have been less stressful.

    It was a fact of life that people normally got used to their routines and how their lives worked. Yet most of the time those same people could get used to changes even if they were far from what they had been dealing with before. The real trouble came when a society as a whole became caught up in how it was and made no effort to change that.

    Black Bolt knew that there had been no choice about moving Attilan to the moon, where everyone would be safe from the harm being on Earth was causing the Inhuman people. But he wished that there had been another choice, one that would force his people to deal with the world outside of their own. The only individuals who were not Inhumans who had spent any extended period of time among them were the Fantastic Four, Pietro, and to a degree Luna. And Pietro could not always have been said to be the best representative of his kind, although his efforts at trying to fit in were worthy of praise. But that was a large reason why not many of the Inhumans sought out contact with the outside world. Why do such a thing, when the world around you was perfectly fine as is?

    There was one major exception to the rule of isolation. From the very first time that Crystal had gone and seen the rest of the world she had wanted to see more of it. There had been one time shortly before she and Pietro had been wed when she had been telling him and Medusa all about the redwood trees in California. “Do you know how high they grow? Pietro says you can't see the tops of them no matter how much you strain your head. Imagine, trees growing to be the size of mountains!” The sparkle in her eyes had been the first sign that Attilan had already lost Crystal, even before she had stepped outside again. She must not have been that open about her desires to most others, because he believed that if Pietro had known how much she wanted to explore then there was a chance he would have gone and tried to see if they could make their lives together on Earth instead of struggling to find a place in Attilan. Maybe then...

    Black Bolt sometimes wished that Pietro hadn't gone and tried so hard for acceptance within the martial realm. He'd known from the start that the militia was only going to take up a great deal of his time and that serving there wasn't likely to grant him the respect he desired. But who was he to order someone who was not truly his subject into anything? Besides, based on how well he knew Pietro he doubted his words would have made much of a difference if he had spoken them. His former brother-in-law was a stubborn man, one who did not like to be told how to conduct his life.

    It may have been an even better option to have stepped in at the very beginning and informed Crystal that she was not allowed to marry Pietro. That would have kept some of the trouble they were now having from coming up. But he knew that he never could have enforced such a ruling. From the moment the two of them had met the connection had been obvious. People had talked, of course. At first they had just said that Crystal was only trying to be nice to their guest – it was the courteous thing to do, naturally. He had to shake his head at how much denial could live within anyone who did not want to see what they saw.

    Once it was clear that Pietro and Crystal were not going to just go their separate ways, the reaction of most Inhumans had changed. It might work out if an outsider were to join them, but said outsider would have to reject all they had been a part of before. Pietro did not do so. Yes, he tried to fit in with the Inhumans, but he also kept his ties to the outside world and attempted to introduce his own customs to them. His wanting Luna to be brought up in the church he himself had been raised in was one of the issues that had first caused major ripples. Black Bolt felt for his part that it was a ridiculous controversy. This was something that meant a great deal to Pietro, and why should he be denied what was such a small thing in the end? Yet there had been talk about how this meant Pietro was not showing proper respect for the customs of their people. And when shortly afterward Crystal had been found to be seeing another man, so many people had said that if only her husband had gone and had more respect for her people none of that would have happened. Black Bolt personally thought that the more likely culprit had been the inability of either one to share what bothered them and why was the bigger reason behind the trouble.

    It had only been when he had seen how relationships were outside of the world of the Inhumans that he had been able to see a serious problem they tended to possess. Most of the couples that got married in Attilan did so because they were compatable with each other, nothing more. Crystal and Medusa's parents fit into this well. Quelin and Ambur lived like most did – they never disagreed with each other, always were in support of one another and also never really felt any joy in the company of their spouse. No joy, but also no pain. Wasn't that how things were supposed to go? His own parents had been uncommonly happy together, but there was often a thought that royalty needed a little bit more to keep them going. They were supposed to be the cream of the crop and accordingly could wish for more in life. Meeting Reed and Sue had shown him a side of relationships that he had never seen before. Sue and Reed fought, they disagreed with each other – and none of that changed the way they felt about each other. Over time both he and Medusa had begun to do much of the same things, and he knew that being able to voice those feelings made their relationship stronger. Why hadn't he had Medusa speak with Crystal and Pietro about doing something similar?

    If it was possible, Black Bolt would have sighed. He knew that one of the reasons they never tried to help out was due to them already being on shaky ground because of Luna's birth. It wasn't something Crystal had ever found out, and he hoped she never did. When her and Pietro had begun to talk about having children, the idea had to go before the Genetics Council. And to the utter shock of Medusa, the request had been quickly turned down. His wife had gone and pressed for more details as to why they had been declined, and in the end it had boiled down to Pietro not being an Inhuman. Who knew how his child would end up turning out? If she hadn't gone and told them that she was certain Crystal was going to be having a child at some point no matter what they said then even a unconvincing “yes” might have not come about. It had been quietly agreed that the only thing that the two of them were going to be told was that they had been given approval to become parents, nothing more. Black Bolt still gave thanks that no one who had been part of the decision had gone and ever told Crystal the truth. Not that it would really matter now, because the odds of her coming back home were slim to none.

    Turning his thoughts away from Pietro for now, Black Bolt wondered exactly when the point had come when he had started to question how much of a good idea it was to marry Crystal to Ronan. He had been impressed by the man at first. He was extremely polite whenever he spoke to Medusa, and always expressed the proper respect for Inhuman customs. This led Ronan to become quite popular among those he met, and the general assumption from the population was that at last Crystal had found a good choice for a partner. But Black Bolt had held off from making any real statements until he actually got to meet Ronan on a more personal level. This had never come about. He always had some excuse for not being able to meet with the king, and although his words were still polite there was clearly something else going on.

    That alone wasn't enough to distrust him. Sometimes you just couldn't get along with someone else, and there was little to be done about that. It had only been with the Luna incident that Black Bolt had realized things were not likely to work out as well as one wished they would. Ronan's insisting on not allowing Luna to be part of his life made little sense. Even if he did not want to deal with Pietro, there still was no need to then decide the best course of action would be to just never be around his daughter. Crystal had clearly taken this badly, and from the day Luna had left she had lost a certain something in her eyes. The last time he could recall having seen anything similar was shortly after Crystal had left the Avengers to return home. She may have said that she was happy to be back in Attilan, but her words rang hollow. (Black Bolt felt that most people shared more of their feelings in ways other than the words they spoke. Not being able to voice his own thoughts had given him a unique insight as to the ways you could say volumes without speaking a single word.)

    It had been something from Ronan that had triggered a sense of alarm the first time they all got together. Up until he had told them about what Crystal had been doing he had been the picture of charming, so much that Black Bolt felt guilty for not trusting him as much as he could. And it was important to know that Crystal had been trying to seek out contact with her daughter so often. If they were fortunate, then he could use that knowledge as leverage to get Luna back into her mother's life sooner than later. While the way Ronan had spoken of the phone calls wasn't all that promising, it was the look on his face that was most concerning. He appeared to be happy to be telling Medusa and Black Bolt how Crystal was not acting as she should. If the calls to Pietro were truly distressing to him, why would Ronan be glad to tell anyone about them?

    From that point onward he made it his mission to look more closely at what Ronan was not saying. And it did not look good for him. He never looked to be happy around Crystal, not in the way you would expect someone to be with the person they were marrying. His expression was more of a possessive one than a loving one. Furthermore, none of his charm was ever directed at Crystal – Ronan typically spoke to her in a somewhat patronizing tone of voice. Yet he did not ever go and try to put a voice to his concerns. Why had he failed?

    Black Bolt knew that one of the reasons had to be how the majority of the Inhuman people reacted to the news of Ronan and Crystal's upcoming marriage. There would be a great deal of questions asked if the wedding was called off. So many people already thought that Crystal had been neglecting her responsibilities towards her people ever since she had gotten married the first time around, and what in the world was she thinking by pushing her duties away yet again? The brief time she had served on the Avengers had made things worse than they had been when she had married Pietro, because no one could understand why spending time on Earth helping out with Earth-related matters meant so much to her. Medusa had done her best to try and smooth things over, but how could you explain to someone who was happy where they were that Crystal belonged elsewhere, that she hadn't really been a full part of Attilan since she'd first met humans? Crystal was typically thought of as being flighty, and not caring about what her duties were. If she did care, the overall attitude was that she then would have spent all her time helping out her own people, not some lesser race. And although Black Bolt felt the chances of any troubles emerging from the breaking of the engagement were rather small, it still made no sense to go and risk any upheavals in the government. The few changes he had been able to make in the way society was run had not always been greeted with a great deal of praise, and if there were enough people who could go and promise to restore the status quo...

    It had only been when Crystal had run off that things had seemed to come to the surface. Medusa had shared what she thought to be the story with him, but he had shaken his head in response to Ronan's claim that her attack had come out of nowhere. Medusa had then said “No, I'm fairly certain he was leaving something out of that. He did talk about how Crystal was trying to get Luna to be part of the wedding, and based on what I know about him I believe Ronan must have said something that was either a horrid remark about Luna or something telling Crystal there was no chance her daughter was going to be living with them after the wedding. Not that if it were the case it would make her actions justified, but I can see that as being far more likely than something completely unprovoked.”

    He'd indicated that if Medusa was able to get in touch with Crystal that it might be best if she stayed where she was for a while. That would give everyone the chance to let tensions calm down and come up with the best plan of action for the future. Then things had changed once again once Sue Richards had given his wife a piece of her mind. What she had said horrified Black Bolt, but he could not think of any real reason why Ronan being abusive was impossible. He had gone and wondered to Medusa if she had seen any signs of Crystal having been hurt in some way when they had spoken of the incident. She had answered in the negative, but did say “Until Ronan came into the room, Crystal seemed to be different. She didn't act like she normally does, and wasn't saying anything in her defense. Oddly enough, it was when Ronan arrived that she started to stand her ground and refused to apologize. Crystal said that she couldn't go forward with this but never said why.” She did not look happy to say the next part. “And when I asked her to give me a reason, she said she would tell me only if we were alone. Ronan said if the issue concerned him then she should be able to say it in front of him, and then Crystal wouldn't say anything at all. I should have known something was wrong then, but she didn't look like anything major had happened and I was so blinded by how important the alliance was that I never thought about what it might be costing us.”

    If he could, he would have tried his best to tell Medusa it wasn't entirely her fault. He should have stepped in once how he saw the idea of marriage was taking something away from Crystal. Instead he could only place his hand on her shoulder.

    Medusa then said “I'm going to have to talk to Ronan fairly soon about not being able to locate Crystal. What do you think I should say so that he will not demand we go and take further action? If I wanted, I could go and look to the Avengers and see if they have any idea where Crystal is. But I won't, not unless I feel there's no other option and she needs to be here to avoid outright war. I doubt I'll have to do that, and even if I did odds are Crystal still wouldn't want to return here.”

    He had the idea that what might be best to speak of was how unsettling all this had to be for her, that maybe what was needed was more time rather than less. That might give Ronan pause, and if it did not it was time to start telling him that the deal was off. In the end in had worked out roughly as he thought it was going to. Ronan had not taken the idea that they were going to do anything but what he wished very well, and Medusa had no issues with telling him that the planned alliance was off.

    She had told him afterwards “I hope that this is the end of all this trouble. Ronan hopefully isn't going to come and cause trouble for us, or even worse – he might go and try to find where Crystal might be. I doubt he knows who she's close to, but if he wanted to try to get to her he could go after Pietro instead. I don't know if he would take us reaching out to him all that well given how everything turned out, but...” Medusa then said “I hope wherever Crystal is right now, she's happy and safe.”

    Black Bolt himself was hoping the same. He wondered what it was that Crystal was doing now.

* * *

 

    Most of the notes that Crystal had been making on those the Avengers had lost were sprawled out on Dane's kitchen table. Today she hadn't gotten a chance to do much with them, because it had been more important to make sure the walls surrounding the mansion were ready to withstand whatever it was that they were going to encounter.

    The person she had spent most of the day working with was Chris, one of the many Avengers she only knew by vague memories of his face as well as his name. He had told her much the same, saying “All I think I really knew about you before was that you were married to Pietro. When Jan said she wanted us to work together I was worried about how it was going to work. But today's been pretty fun. I hope we can do it again soon.”

    She'd smiled and said “There's a lot of people I'm hoping to do the same with. It was great to work with you today, Chris.”

    Now she was going over her notes and waiting for Reed. Today was the first day he was going to try out the new treatment, and Crystal couldn't wait to see how it was going to work out. Being able to go out without having to wonder if her medication was going to keep the effects of spending too much time on Earth at bay would be a freedom she desperately wanted to have. The last time that things had ended up that way came up in her mind, and she shoved away those memories as she went to answer the door.

    It was a small surprise to see Hank McCoy standing there instead of Reed, but not all that much of one. Reed had said that if something came up he was going to send someone she would trust to perform the treatment, and Hank was both someone she trusted as well as someone who would know what to do. “Sorry for the short notice, Crystal. Something came up with Reed and he doesn't know when they'll be back, so for the time being I will be serving the role of your medical professional.” He gave an exaggerated bow that made her laugh.

    “Then I'll go and hand myself over to your expertise. Should we go back to the kitchen or is my room a better choice?”

    “Your room would work better, if only because I'd prefer if we weren't somewhere that runs the risk of certain pathogens. Performing medicine where there's also food being prepared and eaten is something that most doctors tend to frown upon.”

    That made sense, and she gestured to where her room was. Crystal was silent as she was given the first shot, and Hank eventually asked her “How have you been holding up?”

    “Do you mean physically or mentally? Because I've been feeling alright ever since I got here, but I'm still worried about having to go back. I don't think that Medusa's going to show up out of the blue and drag me back home, but I know perfectly well there's nothing that's going to be able to keep me here. I guess if I were to join the Avengers again that might help – then I could use it as a reason why I'm not able to return. But even then I still wouldn't be able to go against some sort of official order on the behalf of the Inhuman people, not without really being a part of here.” She hated to say it. “I feel like I'm stuck.”

    Hank rubbed his chin. “Well, what if you were a US citizen? Then you would have the laws of the country on your side. No one could make you leave your home then.”

    Crystal wasn't opposed to the idea, but she knew that there would be barriers to putting it in place. “Since I officially don't exist in any way on this planet, that's not going to be very easy. Unlike Anna, I can't say that I'm fleeing certain harm from my home. There's no civil war that I picked the wrong side in, and even though I know perfectly well what life with Ronan would be like I doubt that would be enough for me to go and claim I'm a refugee.”

    His voice was softer as he said “There's another way you could get some kind of legal status here.”

    “What would that way be?”

    Hank answered with “You could go and get married to someone who's already a citizen. If you did that, not only would you have status here but it would also make it harder for Medusa to have you come back. The law here states you can only be married to one person at a time, and no one can force you into a divorce you aren't willing to accept.”

    Marriage. It was the word that had started all this trouble, and one she still didn't think about happening any time soon. Running her thoughts over the idea, it started to have more and more appeal to her. Crystal knew that her sister had respect for the rules, and if there was a real barrier that would make it impossible for her to marry Ronan Medusa wasn't going to force the issue. As for Ronan himself... She shook her head and asked “Are you offering, by any chance?”

    “Only if you would like to ask me. It was more just something I thought could give you an anchor here. I'd probably prefer to marry someone that I can count on having a bit more in common with than you.” Hank added “Don't take that as a mark on you.”

    “None taken. I don't know who it would be that I would want to marry, but you probably aren't going to be on the top of that list. But I am seriously considering doing it. Marrying someone else won't make a difference if Ronan decides to drop in, but that might be the thing I need to keep my people away from me.”

    “Do you think that Ronan might come and try to find you?” he said in response.

    “I do.” Crystal didn't really want to say it, but she also knew that not thinking about her ex-fiance wasn't going to keep him from finding her. Ronan wouldn't know about Dane, not unless he went and tried to research who had served on the Avengers with her _and_ also realized that the team would be one of the best places for her to seek shelter. Or even worse, Medusa might say something that led him to look at them more closely. She knew that her sister wasn't likely to go and directly mention the Avengers (at least not if Ronan seemed unreasonable), but who knew what remark might push him in the right direction? “The last time I was able to get him away from me, but if we were to have a direct hand-to-hand fight I'd have no chance at all. That scares me, because even if I were able to use my powers to their best extent I can't keep it up forever. I doubt that Ronan's going to take what I did to him very well.” His being able to succeed where he had failed the last time sent shudders running down her spine.

    Hank responded gently “You know that all of the Avengers will stand with you if Ronan were to come here. That would mean a great deal of allies on your side.”

    “Yes, but they would have to get the message that I was in trouble soon enough to help me.”

    He pondered this for a few moments and said “Then if you'd like I could look into getting you something so that all the Avengers could get alerted if any trouble comes up. It wouldn't just be good for you – we all need to be aware of things happening to teammates, especially now that we're more vulnerable than before.”

    “That would be much appreciated, thank you.” Crystal added “Would Wanda be one of those who would be on the alerts or not?”

    Hank sighed. “I think that while Wanda would want to help you out in the event that you were in danger, I don't feel comfortable approaching her in regards to Avengers matters. I can't really blame her given how almost all of us were willing to turn on her All the updates I've gotten on how she and Vision have been doing have come through Simon. He's finally managed to make his peace with his brother, and they all had dinner together not that long ago.”

    Crystal stated “I should go and see if I can get in touch with Wanda myself. Pietro said that she wouldn't mind speaking to me, and it's been so long since we got a chance to talk to each other.”

   “Oh, so you've gone to see Pietro?” He seemed surprised to have heard that.

    “What I really wanted was to see if I could go and speak with Luna. She didn't really talk to me, but she also didn't go and say anything bad. I'm trying to look on that as being positive.”

    Hank nodded, and Crystal thought he wanted to say something but didn't. “We're just about finished up here. Keep an eye out for any signs of trouble, and if you do start feeling unusual then take one of your pills and call me. You do still have a supply of them, right?”

    “Reed gave me enough to last several months when we last spoke, so I should be okay even if this doesn't work out. But I'm hoping for the best. I'm tired of not getting to see all that this world has to offer.”

    “For your sake I'll hope for the best as well. I'll be seeing you again soon – we're scheduled to work together on the mansion pretty soon.”

    “I'll be looking forward to it. See you, Hank.”

    Later in the evening, while she was having dinner with Dane, was the first time she voiced Hank's idea to someone else. “You know that Hank McCoy came by today to give me the first treatment of Reed's.”

    Dane nodded. “So what happened?”

    Crystal took a deep breath and she said “He had the idea that if I'm concerned about Medusa or someone else from Attilan coming to take me back that maybe I could get married again, just so that I would have something to keep me here.”

    It was harder to say that than she first thought it would be. Crystal knew that if she had to pick someone to get married to in flash Dane would be high up on the list. It didn't have anything to do with a romantic attachment between them, because Crystal doubted she ever could feel that way about her friend. She merely knew that Dane would be happy to help her out with what might be necessary, and he wasn't going to demand much more out of the marriage than just giving her an anchor in this world.

    Dane took in that information for a few minutes. “What do you think about that?”

    “I think that there's some merit to the idea, at least in the part where it might keep me from being forced back to Attilan. Medusa respects the rules of society enough that she's not going to go and demand I end my marriage just so I can marry Ronan.” Crystal tried not to think about how she had been gently told when things had started to go badly with Pietro how it might be for the best if she went and ended things. Things had ended, and it had all been for the best, and there was nothing else to be said. “What do you have to say about this?”

    “Is this your way of asking me if I'd be willing to undertake this marriage with you?” He didn't sound upset, merely questioning.

    “Maybe.” Crystal then explained “We do know each other, and I can trust that you wouldn't go and want anything more than a marriage of convenience. Even if it would help me out here, I wouldn't want to go and cause somebody else pain because of it.”

    “That's true enough. But there's one major problem with me agreeing to this.”

    “What problem would that be?”

    Dane took a deep breath. “Really, it's a bit selfish. When I go and think about getting married, I know that I want to do it someday, and that I also want to make sure that I love the woman that I choose in the end. When it comes to you, Crys, I know that I don't love you in the way I want to love the person I marry. So what would happen if I did meet the right person while we were together? I hate to have to tell you no, but as it stands there's no way that I can say yes.”

    It wasn't that much of a surprise to hear Dane say that. Crystal fully expected that one day he was going to want to get married, and even if he wasn't seriously thinking about marriage it wasn't entirely fair to want her friend to forgo the possibility of ever doing so just so she could stay where she was. “Well, I don't think that I'd have to remain married to you forever. Just long enough.”

    She didn't intend for her words to make Dane change his mind, and he sounded rather calm as he replied “True, but how long might that be? Months? Years? If it was too short a period of time that would make things look more suspicious than they would already be. I don't think it would be right of me to waste your time in such an arrangement. What if you also happen to fall in love again?”

    “I doubt that.” Crystal wasn't sure why she felt so strongly on the issue. She guessed it was something stemming from how all of her other chances for relationships had gone badly. “Some of us just aren't cut out for anything serious.”

    Dane answered “I'm sorry to hear that. I wouldn't give up hope, not yet. You can't ever tell what might happen. Do you want to ever get involved with someone seriously at some point?”

    That wasn't a question she could ever recall having thought about. “I don't know.”

    There was another period of silence. He finally asked her “Have you thought of anyone who you might want to go ahead with marrying, if you can't find someone that you're really in love with?”

    She shrugged. “I just got the idea today. I'm not sure that there's been enough time for me to make any decision on who might work. Hank did say that he probably wouldn't be the best choice because he'd rather marry someone he's got things in common with.”

    “That's certainly something to keep in mind. Do you think you might know anyone besides me who would be willing to go forward with a marriage?”

    Crystal felt strange admitting the next part. “I don't think there are enough people that I know here in order for me to say yes or no to that. Someone who's an Avenger, maybe?”

    “Too bad that we aren't having this conversation ten years earlier. Then if you needed to find someone for a marriage of convenience there would always be the option of marrying Miguel. He wouldn't be able to marry someone he fell in love with in most places, so why not go and help you out? If that was the case I really don't think you'd care if he found a man that he wanted to spend his life with.”

    “But at the same time it wouldn't be fair to Miguel to make him go through a marriage where there's no way he could ever be happy. What if the man he meets isn't happy with having an affair? If I do go through with this marriage, I would have to make sure that whoever I marry knows that having any real kind of relationship might not be happening for a while. I doubt that it would look good if I were to get married, become a citizen, and then decide to get a divorce. Waiting a bit before ending things would be much safer.”

    She also knew that deep down she didn't want to have to get divorced again. Maybe it would be possible to find someone who was willing to marry a person they didn't love and who also would be content with not ending things. (An even tinier part of Crystal wanted that person to love her in some way, but that was far too much to hope for.)

    “You're right about how such a brief marriage would be taken. So the best advice I could give you would be to take some time to figure out if there's anyone who would fit the bill besides me.” Dane did add “But if after a few months or so you still haven't found the right man, then I will step up to the plate and marry you. I just want to wait and be sure.”

    Crystal nodded. She wished she could think of something to say to fully express her gratitude. Dane was at least going to try and see how things were turning out instead of just turning her down, which was something. She hoped the look on her face was enough to convey all that she felt.

    Dane gave her what she hoped was a look of understanding, and they resumed eating in silence.

* * *

 

    Crystal had been starting to settle down for the night when she heard her phone ring. It was the last thing she'd been expecting, since she had no idea who wanted to speak to her. “Hello?” she said.

    “Crystal? It's me, Jan.”

    “Well, it's nice to hear from you.” She didn't say how much of a surprise it was, thinking that was going to sound wrong. _Yeah, I didn't think you were really enough of a friend to actually go and contact me._ What a lovely sentiment.

    “I'm glad to hear that. Anyway, the reason I was calling was because I know that neither one of us is going to work on the mansion tomorrow, and I thought it might be nice if we went out for the day. Just go and catch up, have some fun.”

    Crystal had to think about this for longer than she thought she should. She did want to go out and spend some time with Jan, to get to know the other woman better. But there was also the part of her that was afraid of how things might turn out. You couldn't be friends with everyone, and there was the chance that she and Jan wouldn't turn out to have much in common or be able to make connections.

    At last she said “That sounds nice, but I was thinking about calling Wanda and seeing if she might want to see me tomorrow. I was told that she was interested in meeting up with me at some point, so do you mind if I talked with her before I could give you an answer?”

    Jan then responded with “Why don't you go and ask Wanda if she'd like to come with us? Then you wouldn't have to make a decision between us. And it would be fun for me as well – I've been meaning to go and talk with Wanda at some point, but I haven't had the time.”

    “Do you really think Wanda's going to want to go hang out with you?” Crystal said the words without thinking. “I mean, after all the things that happened I don't know how eager she's going to be to spend time with another Avenger.”

    “We have spoken since all this went down, and the last time I saw Wanda she didn't seem to be too upset with me. I really don't know why exactly she's on better terms with me than almost all of the other big names, unless it's because I said I was sorry for what happened. Or it could be that she knows I didn't mean to say what I did, or that getting together all the people I did to help her out. I doubt that we're as close as we used to be, but I don't think that Wanda's never going to speak to me again.”

    Crystal said “I wondered when I talked to Pietro whether or not she was going to want to talk to me, because we don't really have a connection any more. He told me that I'm always going to be a part of their family, if only because of Luna.”

    Jan then went on to say “And you're always going to be a part of the Avengers as well. I'm making it my mission from now on to have everyone who's been a member know that. If Magdalene and Philip had felt like they could go and talk to someone in charge about why everything wasn't adding up for them, then maybe we would have gotten to the bottom of this sooner.”

    “Is that the main reason you want to hang out with me?”

    “Oh, of course not.” It was easy to imagine Jan waving her hand around as she spoke. “You haven't been doing all that much save some mansion work since you got here, and I hate seeing you just sit around all day. Who wants to just do the same old thing all the time? Get out of your rut, have fun, see things you've never seen. What's the point of going some place new and never changing?”

    It was like looking into a mirror. She'd had trouble with explaining in the past to her people why she'd liked being on Earth, but had never been able to adequately explain things. “I understand that, believe me. What was it you had in mind for us to do?”

    “That'll depend on if Wanda is going to come with us or not. If she does I'll revise things a bit, but I can tell you that you're going to like what we'll do. I am one of the best people in New York to go and see about having a good time.”

    “I can't wait to see what's on your agenda. Once we're done I'll go talk to Wanda and see what she has to say.”

    “And I can't wait to hear back from you. I'll talk to you later, Crystal.”

    With the call over, Crystal turned her mind back to Hank's idea. Was it really a good thing if she were to get married again, to someone who likely wasn't going to love her, just so that she could have some security? She sighed, not having any real answer, and went to go and speak to Wanda.

 


	12. Somebody That I Used to Know

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crystal runs into a face from her past, a series of phone calls is made, and Anna finally gets the answer to a question she has long asked.

    To Crystal's surprise, Wanda had sounded delighted to go and meet with her and Jan. “I think that it's a good idea for you and Jan to get to know each other better. I don't like thinking about you being so alone here – that's always something that's going to create trouble in the long run. And I've been spending a little too much time either at Martha's or getting our home ready. I think at the rate we're going Vision and I will be ready to move back in by the end of the month. I did go and see Stephen a few days ago, but...” Wanda trailed off, and Crystal wished she felt comfortable enough to ask what it was about Stephen that was making her upset. Not that she could say she knew anything about the man to even make a vaguely educated guess on the matter, but maybe there was something she could do about it.

    “Then I'll call back Jan and tell her you'd like to come with us.”

    “I think I'd rather go and take care of that. Jan and I haven't spoken since she ended up telling that other group of Avengers where I was, and I don't want her thinking that I'm upset with her. Also, I think it'll help make things easier if I can give Jan an idea about how things should go.”

    It made sense, and she'd thanked Wanda. Now she was waiting for Jan to come and get her. When the doorbell rang, Crystal opened the door to find both women standing there. “I'm glad to see you,” was all she could think to say.

    Wanda answered with “I'm just as happy to see you here. I was so worried once I heard about what was going on with Luna and everything else. I was afraid at one point I might have to go and stop Pietro from running off and doing something stupid. He was so worried that something awful was going to happen, and I'm glad you were able to get away before things got even worse.”

    “If I had stayed, I know that things would have gone worse.” Crystal still didn't want to talk about what had happened. As of yet she'd only been able to give a bare-bones account to Dane, Sue, and Greer (and she knew that the only reason she'd been able to tell Dane even that much was due to having shown up at his door so suddenly that night). It was denial, but if it was working for her then it would have to do.

    Jan asked “Can you tell us what did happen?”

    “I really don't feel like talking about it now. I'll just say that things got out of hand.” Crystal headed out of the house, hoping that was going to put an end to any further discussion.

    As they were headed off to the car, Jan then went on to say “Do you think that you'll ever want to talk about it?”

    “Not now, and not any time in the near future.”

    Wanda looked concerned. “Do you think that it might be a good idea to talk with a professional instead of just with us? I can understand how it might be hard to talk to friends about your problems – someone who's job it is to listen to things like that might be better.”

    “I haven't thought about doing that.” A neutral party listening to her talk did feel a bit easier than talking to friends.

    Jan was sitting down in the driver's seat when she said “Well let me give you some advice. If you do go and talk to somebody you should not go and see one Dr. Bendis. He is an idiot who probably can't be trusted to tie his own shoes in the morning. How that man managed to get a degree is a mystery to me.”

     Wanda asked “Why were you seeing him, and what made you figure out he was an idiot?”

     “It was around one of the times Hank was getting sick, and I was starting to notice all the signs – he wasn't sleeping, talking faster, not being able to follow his train of thought – all the usual things. The problem I was having was that Hank swore he was taking his medication, and I wondered if there might be something else going on, which led to me looking up the name of a psychiatrist who was available.”

    “Can I guess that the problem in the end was that Hank wasn't telling you the truth?”

     Jan sighed. “Yes. But when I went to Dr. Bendis and told him a bit of what was happening he brushed me off. Said if there were problems it would help if I just went and tried to remind Hank of the good times we had that was going to get him back to acting normally. Which might have been valid in a mostly healthy person, but that isn't the sort of thing you say when a loved one is talking about their worries for a person who is mentally ill in some way.”

    Wanda shook her head. “And nothing ended up happening to him? Why didn't you go and try to file a complaint against him?”

    “It wasn't until later on that I learned the reason he'd gone and given me the advice he did was that he'd gone and made the assumption that I was just some spoiled rich person who had never had any real problems in her life, and now that I was actually dealing with some trouble I didn't want to handle it. But it had been so long since I'd actually gone and spoke with the idiot that I wasn't sure I could make a good enough case. So as far as I know, he's still out there causing trouble to people in need.” Jan sighed. This was clearly something she had lingering in her for a long time, and Crystal felt like there was something more she should say or do. Her lack of familiarity kept her silent, as she knew little of what the right thing for Jan was.

    After a few moments of silence, Crystal got up the courage to ask “Where are we going today? I'd prefer if shopping wasn't on the top of the list.”

    “Don't worry. When Wanda called me yesterday she gave me a heads-up on what you'd like to do. So the plan for today is to go hit up a few museums, have dinner, and catch a show at the end of the day. How does that sound to you?”

    “Like a lot of fun.” Crystal smiled as she remembered the last time she had gone to a museum on Earth. “The last time I went somewhere like that was back when I was still on the Avengers.”

    There had been a lull in anything major going on, and both her and Pietro had been just spending time at the mansion. The others, having noticed the two of them were the only ones who weren't taking advantage of the quiet, had ordered them to go out and do something. In the end they had chosen and visit an art museum.

    “So what happened then?” Jan managed to perfectly balance sounding curious and wanting to know more, something in Crystal's experience was not an easy thing to do.

    “Well, we ended up going to an art museum because we didn't know where else would be a good place to go. And when we got there, I could see a man standing around a fountain inside, passing out some kind of leaflet. I was the one who walked over and got one – I was honestly curious as to what it said.” She had a feeling that Pietro had suspected the nature of what she was getting based on the look on his face, but that only was clear in hindsight. “And what I saw there was like a slap to my face. The whole thing was about the dangers that mutants possessed to society and what needed to be done to stop them.” It was something that would have outraged her even if she hadn't been married to Pietro. As a child, Crystal could remember asking questions about those that Inhuman society had deemed to be lesser, wondering what was so wrong with them. Her parents had told her not to say things like that, that there was nothing she could do to change things and in any event this was just how things were supposed to be. That answer had not left her feeling things were right, and she drew on that memory as she continued. “At first I wanted to slap him, to ask by what right he could go and do such a thing, but Pietro just said there was no point. He wasn't going to change his mind in any case, so why should I go and risk getting myself into trouble?”

    Wanda laughed. “That doesn't sound like advice Pietro would have taken himself very well. I still remember how back in the day he was always going head-to-head with someone who said anything like that, even in a indirect way. I wonder why he was so careful then?”

    Crystal thought that Wanda already knew the answer based on the look she had, and she didn't want to think about what that answer was. She knew perfectly well what the reason was, but if she allowed herself to think about it that led her into a part of herself she was determined to leave untouched. “Of course I couldn't let him just go on doing what he was doing, so I did the next best thing. I went and made sure a tidal wave of water from the fountain poured all over him. Destroyed all of his pamphlets and left him looking like a fool. Oh, we were laughing so hard afterwards...”

    “It sounds like you had a good time in spite of everything,” Jan added.

    “I suppose.” She still didn't want to think about the past all that much. Fortunately for her, Wanda started to talk about how things were going with her home and the subject was then changed.

* * *

 

    Crystal was waiting for Wanda and Jan to come out of the bathroom when she got the biggest surprise of all for the day. Almost out of nowhere, she heard a voice calling her name. “Crystal! Is that you?”

    At first she couldn't place whoever the man was, but as he walked closer she suddenly was filled with recognition. “Norm,” she whispered.

    Crystal wished she could say seeing her old lover was a positive thing, but by now the only thing in her head was how foolish she had been in even going to him. Things hadn't been going well with her and Pietro at the time – he was spending more time away from home than she thought was wise, and he seemed to be more on edge when he was there. But on the handful of occasions Crystal had gone and asked him if everything was alright, he had always said everything was fine.

    During Thanksgiving at Wanda and Vision's, she must have looked concerned, because at one point Norm had asked “Is everything alright? You seem preoccupied.” And then Crystal had started to pour out her feelings, while he nodded and offered words of encouragement. “It's a pity your husband doesn't seem to understand you,” he had said at one point.

    Crystal had at first tried to defend Pietro, to talk about all the wonderful things he did and how he showed his love, but Norm had gently overcome those objections so that by the end of the night she was agreeing with him when he suggested she drop in some time if she wanted someone who was going to listen to her.

    (She had been so young then. Not that she was old now, but at the time she hadn't been able to think of any other reason why Norm would be so kind to her other than just being a nice person. Crystal now could see how easy it had been to go and fall under his spell, and what he had probably been wanting from the moment they first met.)

    Of course the first time she came to see him nothing happened. He just allowed her to talk about her fears, how she was worried that nothing Pietro did was going to make him good enough in the eyes of her people, how there were times she could see the same things happening to Luna as she got older. It felt good to get all that off her chest, and Norm had told her over and over how unfair it was that this was happening to her. “Someone as wonderful as you are shouldn't have to deal with all this,” had been his mantra. At the end of the visit, Crystal had been told she could come back any time, and she'd found the idea to be charming. To be honest, it was nice to have someone who spent all that time fawning over you.

    But coming the second time had been the biggest mistake of her life. Norm had made dinner, and the whole atmosphere had been a decidedly romantic one. Crystal knew that she should have left the moment it had become clear to her, but she still wanted to see how things would turn out. How would she feel if she'd misread the situation?

    And then Norm had moved in to kiss her. Crystal had put up a protest, saying “This isn't right. I'm married, and I love Pietro.”

    But Norm had pressed the issue. “Think about how you've been feeling lately. Everything you've told me. Is this really the life you want to have? I promise that I'll do my best to make you as happy as you deserve.”

    The words had resonated with her. She did want to be happy, and in the foolishness of youth believed the promise of a new start. In hindsight Crystal could see where things were heading based on how they had gone forward. In spite of his promises to make her happy Norm hadn't really gone and done all that much with her other than have dinner on occasion and sleep with each other. He'd brushed off any talk of Luna or how things might end, and for her part Crystal began to feel more and more guilty about what she was doing. Maybe it would have been easier if Pietro had been cruel or overly aloof to her, but he was still doing his part as best he could. In some way having collapsed the way she did was a bit of a relief – there was no point to hiding things any longer.

    There had even been a time when she'd thought that it might be possible to start a life with Norm after all the disaster had settled. Naturally, things had not worked out that way. Once she had told Norm that she was going to be free to marry him if Pietro did not come back to her he had started to pull away. He'd still allowed her to come over and was as charming as he'd been in the beginning, but after a certain point she'd understood that there was going to be no future for them.

     Now Crystal wondered if he'd really ever cared for her or if he'd only been interested in something physical.

    He was now getting closer to her and was saying “It's such a surprise to run into you again. I wondered why you stopped coming over, but I can guess that your people must have started giving you a hard time about me...”

     Oddly enough, the majority of Inhumans hadn't said much of anything about the idea of Norm becoming her husband. This was almost certainly due to the fact they knew the odds of him actually getting to that point were small at best. She looked her former lover directly in the eyes as she said “I'm sorry, do I know you?”

    Norm blinked and tried to focus again. “Crystal? Do you really not remember me, and the time we had together? What about...”

    His words were cut off by another voice saying “Norm, honey, who are you talking to?”

    The woman who was now standing by his side went and put her arm around his shoulders. Crystal almost wanted to ask her  _did he go and tell you all about how much more you deserved out of life, the way he did to me? Did you have someone in your life before you fell for his charm? Are you just another person who's being foolish, or is it something else this time around?_ She remained silent, and kept the neutral look on her face that she had been using since the first call of her name.

    Norm looked a little bit embarrassed as he said “Oh, it's nothing, sweetie. I just mistook her for someone else, that's all.”

    They walked away, with no further words said. Crystal almost didn't notice when Jan and Wanda ended up back at her side. “Who was that you were talking to?” Jan asked.

    She said “Just somebody I used to know, that's all.”

* * *

 

    When the phone rang that evening, Jericho Drumm wasn't all that surprised. Normally it was later in the day when patients would end up contacting him about their current crisis, and outside of his regular office hours there wasn't much else you could do other than make a call. But he had a gut feeling that this particular caller wasn't one of his patients. It had been almost two weeks since he'd gotten a call, and judging by how things had gone in the past one was going to be happening very soon.

    The first time he had been expecting a different caller. Ms. Georges had been seeing him for only a few weeks now, but she had been frequently reaching out to Jericho with her concerns. This was fine for now, as she was a very anxious person and the calls weren't being made every day or even close to that. If that was what it took to keep her stable, then it would be alright.

     But the voice on the other end wasn't one he could place right away. “Jericho? Is what you? Long time no see!”

    It was easy to tell that the man who was speaking was quite drunk. There had been the incorrect word usage as well as the overall tone of his words, which may have been the reason it took a few moments for him to place the voice. “Oh, it's you, Stephen. It's certainly a nice surprise to hear from you.”

    Stephen laughed for a bit. “Yeah. Almost thought you were gonna hang up. Don't want to rain on your parade, huh? Doing anything important?”

    “Nothing that can't let me take some time to catch up with you.” Jericho hadn't really spoken to Stephen for years now. In spite of the fact they were both among the most powerful practitioners of magic on Earth, he admitted they weren't all that close. It had little to do with any incompatibilities in personality and more to do with all of the things they had do each day. Even if there was nothing in the magical realm to occupy his time, Jericho still could count on a list of his patients to take up any spare time he might otherwise have had. “Was there something in particular that caused you to call me tonight?”

    “No. Just wanted to hear somebody, that's all.” The answer felt like it was a partial truth. Stephen had clearly been drinking a great deal, but there was something else underlying the call. He had seen in the past patients only work up the nerve to seek help with the aid of something that lowered inhibitions. Was Stephen calling because he needed some kind of help and didn't know how else to get it?

    “That's as good a reason to call as any. Right now I'm thankfully not quite as busy as I've been in the past, although I have been having difficulties getting the medication that I need for one of my patients. The family is only starting to accept that they might need it, and then there's getting it to the city.” Having a hat in two rings did serve him well when it came to doing what was needed to help people. This particular patient's family had gone to him not seeking a doctor's aid, but instead had been looking for the aid of a hongan. It was not an easy thing to tell the worried people in front of him that no, their relative was not facing a threat from some loa – the only danger was the one that was lurking in their own minds.

    “Yeah. You do good stuff when it's not magic. Not like me.” The sudden self-depreciation sent feelings of alarm through Jericho.

    “What have you been doing lately? At least when you're not working.” It wasn't clear what the best thing to say to Stephen right now would be. His mind obviously wasn't in a good place, and there was also the matter of his having been drinking.

    For many years now Jericho had suspected that Stephen had a serious drinking problem. He'd first started to wonder about it during a mission the two of them were working on. At one point Stephen had seemed to be rather shaky, and this was only resolved when he took a drink from a bottle of what he had first thought contained water. But watching how much more stable he became after said drink raised suspicions. Subsequent times spent with Stephen did point towards him having a rather high tolerance for alcohol, and he typically would try and conceal how much he had been drinking. (It was only the one time when Jericho had seen multiple empty bottles in the trash that he had even the slightest idea of how much was being consumed, and even then it was impossible to tell how much time it had taken to get to that point.) There was also his clear state of intoxication right now. All of those things pointed towards a problem, but without being able to do a proper diagnostic session he could only make guesses.

    “Just got back from someone's place. I even could walk home myself... didn't need help or anything. That's a good thing, I guess.” Stephen tried to brush his words off with a laugh, but Jericho did not see any humor in them.

    “Was this just someone you're seeing casually, or is it more of a serious thing?” Stephen had brought up the issue of having recently slept with someone, so it had to be on his mind in some way. He hoped that asking the question wasn't going to cause things to go badly.

     “You know me, don't you? What makes you think that I could ever have anything serious with anyone?” The tone of false joviality that had been in Stephen's words prior to this was torn away, and the pain he was feeling rang clear.

     If it had been a patient calling, Jericho would have gone and questioned the statement further. Asked why they felt that way, what had led up to their encounter, and tried to see what it was they were really saying. However, Stephen wasn't going and saying anything pointing in the direction of desiring something therapeutic, so it could mean trouble to bring it up. Deciding that sometimes it was better to take a chance, he asked “Why do you think that?”

   The effect was immediate. Stephen took in a sharp breath and said “Sorry for bothering you.” Before Jericho could tell him it was okay, that they didn't have to talk about it any more the call was over.

    From that day onward, Stephen had called on average every few weeks. Most of the time the calls were pretty much the same as they had been the first time – Stephen was usually very drunk and did not seem to want to accept anything other than the vaguest of statements. Jericho did wonder why it was Stephen kept on reaching out to him. Part of it may have been that on some level Stephen wanted to get some kind of help, but didn't know where to turn. He had asked once if Stephen had anyone who was closer to home that he might be able to speak with, but his reaction to that question had been so negative that Jericho vowed to not mention it again. This time, when he answered the phone, his first words were a simple “Hello?”

    “Jericho! Don't you know it's me!” Stephen sounded to be so under the influence that it was remarkable he was able to even speak. “Great news! The witch is dead! Well, not yet. But real soon. Then we can celebrate! How 'bout that?”

    He had questions about what Stephen was talking about when he mentioned the witch, but past experience told him that pressing further would only end the call. Jericho truly wanted to get the man to open up more, to actually be able to do something besides just occasionally speak with him. The problem was made worse by the distance between them, and how hard it was for either one to get away for a while. “I wasn't certain that you were going to be calling me tonight, Stephen. How have you been?”

    At first during the calls Stephen had always seemed to be upbeat until something came up that struck him too close. The last couple of times had been different, and he'd let slip some clues about his real state of mind. What had been shared frightened Jericho, as he could see the man was quite clearly depressed. But Stephen either did not realize how bad his state of mind was or he thought it was somehow acceptable, because he always brushed off any comments made about his own feelings.

    There was a longer pause than normal, and at last he said “Lots of blackness lately. Thought maybe it might help if we talked for a little bit.”

    “We can certainly do that if you'd like.” Jericho had to admit to himself that he hated how these talks weren't leading to something more formal. He'd started to look into what he could do if he were to head off to New York, but in order to accomplish that he needed to make sure all of his current patients were being taken care of in his absence. “What do you mean, lots of blackness? Have you been involved in more battles than usual recently?”

    That was just the right way to put things. By not making Stephen think the question was being asked out of concern for his welfare, the results were overwhelmingly better. His years of experience in dealing with patients that were struggling to cope with their own mental health had shown that the way you phrased things could mean as much as what you were actually asking.

    Stephen was silent for so long that Jericho wondered if he was going to answer the question at all. When he did speak, it was in a far softer tone than he had been using before. “No. It's when you're going and trying to go on, but there's this awful crushing blackness that feels like it's going to take everything from you. Sometimes I can't feel anything else but that.” His voice had faded to nearly a whisper before he stopped talking.

    “That sounds terrible,” was the answer he gave.

    “It's not. Just what I deserve for being so selfish all the time. Most people would probably be glad I feel like that sometimes. I've done enough rotten things to people so that feeling bad is just part of my punishment, don't you think?”

    “Well, I can certainly think of at least one person who would disagree. Wong wouldn't want to know that you've been having so many troubles. Have you spoken with him about any of this?” As it always was, Jericho felt trapped by the lack of definition of his role. If he were only acting as a friend, then it wasn't his place to push Stephen to talk more about his feelings. But if he was being sought out on a therapeutic basis, then it would be irresponsible to not go and discuss what he was bringing up.

    “I can't do that. He already does too much for me. Isn't it bad enough that he has to go and put me to bed sometimes when I can't make it myself?” On one hand, hearing Stephen tear into himself was something Jericho hated on both a professional and personal level. Yet him finally being honest about the pain he was feeling gave a measure of hope for the future. Having insight to some degree was a good sign for future improvement. “Isn't it bad enough that I'm a selfish asshole who's a drunk to boot?”

    “So you think that you might have a drinking problem?” His experience had taught him that asking questions even to things that you knew the answer to gave patients an opportunity to open up. (Stephen may not have officially been a patient of his, but Jericho was now going to treat him as if he were one whenever they spoke.)

    "Don't say it like that. Other people have drinking problems. I'm just a drunk. I drink all the time. I've got to drink so I can get everything working proper. Everything feels easier when I've got a couple of drinks in me." He laughed. "Not like I stop at just a couple, though."

    It was the second sentence that made Jericho go from being concerned for Stephen's welfare to being officially alarmed. Magic was something that required a certain state of mind in order to perform properly. When one was lacking that state, it was anywhere from hard to impossible to get it to do what you wanted. If Stephen genuinely could not get in to that state without the use of alcohol, then he was in a far worse situation than Jericho had suspected. And he could not let that go by without intervening. He took a deep breath and said "Stephen, if what I'm hearing is true then I'm fairly worried about you. I'd like to look into us either having these talks on a more regular basis, or if it would work out better then I could come to New York to see you in person. Does either of those ideas work for you?"

    The answer that he got was in part something he expected to hear, but was also a bit of a surprise. "No! No! Shouldn't have caused you trouble. Can't go through that again... I'm sorry."

    It took a few seconds before Jericho realized Stephen had hung up on him. He cursed his own hasty actions. Why hadn't he tried to ease into the idea of something more formal? And was the only reason Stephen had reacted so negatively to the idea of help just his own self-loathing, or had something else made him feel that way?

    All he did was hope that soon Stephen reached out to him again. If Stephen was a patient, he might have gone and spoken to Wong about his worries for Stephen's state of mind (without offering any specifics as to what they were talking about), but as of now he did not have that privilege. "Please Stephen. Please get back to me soon."

* * *

 

    Anna was not sure if her idea for getting confirmation of her fears for Anelle was the best out of all of the options she had,but with time no longer being on her side she felt there was little choice in the matter. Waiting for the Avengers to get back to her with the knowledge she needed was going to take time, and with her asylum hearing coming up she had to be able to answer questions about Teddy's status in her life.

    The woman who was now standing at her door may have taken on the form of Carol Danvers, but she switched back in to the skin she was comfortable in as soon as she entered the home. "I think that you can guess what I'm going to be telling you."

    "I've pretty much known since the last message," was Anna's answer. "But there's something to be said for getting confirmation. When?"

    "When I spoke with my contacts in the Empire they said it was around a year after you got the last message that Anelle was officially put to death. Her capture came only a short period of time after you last got a message from her. But just so that you know, most of the people I spoke with didn't fully believe that story."

    Taking in what she had heard, Anna asked "Do they think there's a chance she may be alive, or just that the time-frame isn't accurate?"

    "There's a small group who holds that Anelle may still live, but most think that she died shortly after her capture. That was done publicly, but the alleged execution was done in private. The general belief from those I spoke with was that up until the announcement there was still a threat lurking from the forces allied with Anelle. Maybe if they knew she had been killed they either would have fought harder or would have never agreed to deal with the new regime. Who knows?"

    "What did end up happening to her forces?"

    "Most were killed, but a few accepted some terms of surrender. One of them spoke with me for a while, and she had something to say about you."

    "I can guess it isn't good."

    A sigh. "That's an understatement. If you were to ever set foot on our home again, or any of the other worlds the Skrulls have settled, you would be killed on sight."

    Anna had been expecting to hear this, but it still stung to know that the place she had once called home would now no longer welcome her. "What's the reasoning behind that?"

    "Twofold. First of all, you are considered to be harboring a dangerous fugitive in Teddy. His status as Anelle's son might not have mattered so much if he were present following the overthrow - although I admit that I doubt it. But now if he were to show up one day it might galvanize those that still remain of her allies, and that sort of threat must be treated with all the weight it deserves. There's also the fact that you fled all those years ago. Based on your actions, then it needs to be treated like you left because you were working against the Empire, and treason is punishable by death."

    She had to laugh. "I think that you know that I'm one of the last people in the world who even thinks about those things. I only took on the job of caring for Teddy because I had nothing left in my life, and figured a fresh start would do me good."

    Her friend nodded. "But if you know that you're officially marked for death, that might have a greater impact on your initial asylum hearing. Now you don't have to say that you believe that you are in danger if you have to go back - you've got proof of it being true."

    "Yes, but how am I going to talk about that without mentioning you?"

    She shrugged. "Say what you want about me. I've got enough identities here that even if you let one slip I could still just go back to one of the others for a while. And if worse came to worse I could just go home. Nothing's preventing me from doing that."

    Anna knew that wasn't entirely true. "Then why do you still remain here? After your mission ended you had no more reason to remain here. Why are you still clinging to a world not your own?"

    She knew her words were going to sting, and hoped it wasn't going to be too painful. There was a period of silence before a response was given. "Because there's still a part of me that wants to make amends to the people I wronged while I was working. I've yet to be able to work up the nerve to speak to them, but as long as there is a chance I feel like I should stay."

    "What do the authorities who sent you have to say about that?"

    "Well, since no one wants to own up to sending me on a mission that ended badly, there's not all that much they do say. If I did ever have to go and offer up a defense of my actions I'd go and talk about how important it is for us to have someone who's stationed on Earth permanently. I think that would be enough to stave off most trouble."

    Anna had to say something about her earlier words. "I'm sorry for what I said before. I shouldn't have gone and pressed things like that."

    She smiled. "It's okay. I did just give you some terrible news. Can I ask a question of my own? What was it that finally made you take my advice and go to the Avengers?"

    "There was a man who was after me and the children, and even before that I had finally learned who Billy and Tommy's real parents were. Once the hearings and the like are all over I want to go and tell you the whole story. It was a relief to have some of my worries taken away from me, and Tony's said that in the event my request for asylum is turned down I will still be under their protection, so I likely won't have to leave. And now Teddy knows the truth about his family."

    "So it looks like things are finally going to work out for you. You deserve to have some stability in your life, after all those years of hiding. I'm glad to see that, Anna."

    "Sometimes it feels like this is all some dream, and I'm going to wake up and find out that I'm still in the same boat I was before. I doubt that I'll stop feeling that way until I've had all of my hearings. My meeting with the asylum officer is tomorrow morning, and now I can go and say that while I didn't do anything about Teddy until now, I am going to make sure that he's officially my child once I have some status here."

    Her friend said "That's how it should be." She got up, and stated "Now I need to be going, before someone notices that I'm here. Good luck tomorrow Anna."

    "It's much appreciated. And one last thing: thank you for all that you've done for me, Lyja. I won't forget it."

    "I know you won't. Goodbye, Anna."

    Now that she was alone, Anna went to the drawer in the kitchen where she had placed the adoption papers for Teddy. It was long past time for her to get this done, and she knew that tomorrow she would be prepared for whatever questions were thrown at her.

 


	13. Hands Clean

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Vision pays a visit to Stephen, he receives some revelations that shock him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings: past rape/non-con, period typical attitudes towards bisexuality.

    Vision had been asked by Wanda to do a favor for her after she got back from her day with Crystal and Jan. "Anna's got her hearing with the asylum officer tomorrow, and she's asked me to come and look after Teddy then. I'm happy to do that, but I've got to return the books I borrowed from Stephen soon. Would it be possible for you to stop by tomorrow and give them to him?"

    "Of course I could." He did not know Stephen as well as Wanda did, and he had been disturbed by her reports of how troubled the man was. Vision knew that his wife was doing her best to help him, but he suspected that her efforts were not going to prove sufficient. He chose not to voice those thoughts, hoping beyond hope that he was wrong.

    There was a strange atmosphere in the Sanctum as he made his way to the study, where Wong had said he would likely find Stephen. He felt that part of that came from the clear concern that Wong was showing whenever he mentioned the man, but the rest did not feel as easy to place. He knocked on the door.

    "Who's it?" The words were not entirely clear, and Vision wondered for a moment if it was a good idea to come here.

    "Vision. I came to drop off the books Wanda had borrowed from you."

    "Well, come on in!" The door flew open, and he could see Stephen standing there with a smile on his face. "You're just in time for the celebration!" He walked back over to his desk, and Vision saw how unsteady on his feet he was.

    His suspicions about why this was so were confirmed when Stephen went and grabbed a bottle of wine from the top of the desk and proceeded to pour himself a glass. All he could bring himself to say was "What celebration are you referring to?"

    "You don't know?" While the look on Stephen's face was decidedly upbeat, there was a sorrow in his eyes that could not be ignored. In some ways Vision felt that this was worse than if he had just been showing sorrow. The facade of happiness made the knowledge of what Stephen was actually feeling harder to bear. "The witch is dead!"

    "The witch is dead? What do you mean by that?"

    Stephen sounded like he was explaining something to a child. "I mean what I said." He started to sing to himself, "Ding-dong, the witch is dead, the witch is dead..."

    "I understand that whoever the witch is has died, but I cannot say that I am familiar with that person. Can you tell me about them?"

    It took longer for him to speak than Vision would have thought. He could tell that the man was drunk, and the fact that it was still quite early in the day bothered him in a way he could not place. "Edwin Noble! One of the finest of his profession! Good thing he kept his word, you know. Who knows where I'd be otherwise?" He raised his glass and took a drink.

    "Was this Edwin someone you worked with once?"

    "Not really." He took another gulp from the glass he had poured. "He was one of my supervisors back when I was in residency. Was under him for a year. 'Course, I was dumb enough to go to the wrong place. What was I thinking?"

    Vision wondered if he should ask any more questions, or if it would be better if he were to just drop off the books and leave. In the end his concern for Stephen outweighed all other matters. "What manner of place was it?"

    "Just a bar, you'd go and meet people there. The wrong kinds, though. Now they wouldn't care, but back then..." He laughed, but there were traces of tears in his eyes. "...then you'd lose everything! We didn't even do much. Kissed a little bit, that's all. But that'll do it to you!"

    "There shouldn't be anything wrong with just kissing someone, unless they weren't interested for some reason. I doubt that was the case with you."

    "Oh, there was plenty wrong. He was a he! That's not a good thing at all." He pointed towards the wine. "Care to join me in having a glass?"

    "I must decline, I am sorry to say." Vision had tried alcohol in the past, but the flavor had not been one he enjoyed. That combined with the lack of ability to feel any of the mind-altering effects made it an experience he had no desire to try again.

    "Oh, well, more for me then!" Stephen resumed singing the song he had been singing before to himself.

    While he had some idea of what might have happened between Stephen and this Edwin Noble, he wanted to see if his fears were accurate. "So what happened after you kissed the man?"

    Stephen said "Oh, I had to go and see Dr. Noble the first thing the next day. He was not happy with the way I'd behaved, no he wasn't! But we got to talking about how I could make things better, and came to a deal. Just once, that was all, and then he'd make sure that no one ever heard a word about my deviant behavior." The same laughter he had before once again made its presence known. "Once... that was a laugh. But don't get me wrong, it wasn't a big deal at all! I mean, look at what I did afterwards. I kept finding more people who I could be with, more than one a night or even at a time! Insatiable, that's what I was. Heard people talking about what I might do sometimes if I couldn't get a person to sleep with. You know what they say about you if you have so little standards, do you?"

    "No, I do not." There was a cold feeling running through his body. Vision was almost certain what it was that Stephen had to do in order make things better, and the very idea was so appalling to him that he could barely even say the words. He wondered whether or not he should say what he thought needed to be said. But the fact that he was uncertain if Stephen would later on remember his words kept him silent.

    Stephen for his part went on talking like Vision hadn't answered him. "Of course I couldn't stop getting into trouble. I mean, drinking on the job? That's  _bad._ Very bad. What a selfish thing to be doing. Tells you a lot about a person, doesn't it? And you'd think they'd go and learn from that lesson, and stop doing it unless they don't care about anybody else. Now guess which way I went?"

    By now the seeming good humor Stephen had possessed had faded away entirely. Vision wished he knew the man better, just so that he might know what to do or say so that some of his despair could be taken away. The words he truly wanted to say - it wasn't your fault - did not feel like the right thing to say, mainly because he doubted they would be heard.

    Finally he said "Wanda sent me to return the books she borrowed."

    Stephen seemed to not hear him for a moment. Eventually he said "Tell her she can keep them if she wants to. I really don't need them anymore. Might as well have someone get some use out of them. Right?" He finished off the glass of wine.

    It was still a surprise to him that Stephen was even able to put his words together, given how clearly drunk he was. Vision also knew that it still being early in the day made his level of intoxication even worse, because the usual pattern was to wait until the day was coming to an end before going to the bottle. "Perhaps, but for now I feel it would be better if I were to leave the books with you. Wanda sends her regards, by the way. She would have come and given you the books herself, but today is the day Anna has her meeting with the asylum officer and she had to go and look after Teddy." He hadn't been told to say any of that, however with the state Stephen was in something that let him know Wanda hadn't just cast him aside felt important.

    "Then you can just put them down here." He made a gesture towards his desk, and sat down for the first time since Vision had come in. He resumed humming to himself for a few moments, and then added "You can tell Wanda that she can come back any time she likes, and that she can help herself to any books she wants."

    On one hand Stephen seemed to have suffered a complete change in mood since Vision had started asking him questions. But a part of him suspected that the way he was at the moment was the closest to what Stephen actually was feeling. Vision still couldn't shake the idea that he held some blame in this for having brought up an issue that was clearly so painful. "I will tell her that. She has also spoken about bringing the boys over at some point in the future. I am not certain when such a visit may take place, but I know that she will tell you with plenty of time beforehand."

    Stephen just said in response "Sure you don't want to join me for a glass?"

    Uncertain if this was a genuine offer or if Stephen was just trying to deflect from his feelings, Vision once again stated "None for me, I am sorry to say. In fact, it is about time for me to leave." Staying here much longer was not going to accomplish anything, and Vision had plans for when he left.

    There was something said that may have been a goodbye, but it was too unclear to be certain. For his part Vision did say farewell before leaving the room. He did not see Wong as he headed out, something he was grateful for as he had little idea of what he could say to the other man.

    Now that he was outside, Vision began to make his way to the library. He wanted to conduct some research, and the archives of the papers that could be found in there might have some clues about who this Edwin Noble had truly been.

    He hoped he was ready for whatever he was going to find.

* * *

 

_In hindsight, it had all started with a false alarm._

_Stephen had been seeing Lina ever since he had begun his residency. Their arrangement was perfect, as neither was interested in getting married yet. Lina was the first person in her family to attend college, and now that she was getting started as a nurse she knew that her work was the most important thing to her. Stephen himself also wanted to become established in medicine before he went and thought about getting married, and there was also a part of him that wondered if he would ever find someone he loved that much._

_Besides the fact that neither one wanted to get married, there were other differences that made them doubt they had a future together. Stephen came from a farm in Nebraska, and by now had no one left in his family. Lina was from an Italian family in New Jersey that still mainly did not speak English, and she was quite close to them. But for the time being what they had together was nice._

_But there was one thing that neither Stephen nor Lina thought about: what might happen if the two of them continued their relationship without taking precautions. Yes, they knew of others who had suddenly had their plans changed by spending one night together, but with their youth both found it easy to ignore what the outcome might be._

_And then there came what would have been one of the most stressful periods of Stephen's life were it not to be greatly exceeded by later events. He and Lina had agreed to meet for a meal after their day at work was done, and the very first thing out of her mouth was “I think I might be pregnant.”_

_It was like a slap to the face. If Lina was pregnant, then they would have to get married. Stephen knew that she would also have to leave her job, and to say nothing of what she would have to tell her family. “Are you sure?” he asked._

    “ _Not entirely, but it's been almost two months since my last period. There are no other signs yet, but I'm afraid to go and get it checked out. If I am... it means I'll lose everything.” She sighed. “I keep on asking myself why we weren't more careful.”_

_Stephen said “I promise that if it turns out you are pregnant that I will do whatever it takes to make things better for you.”_

_Lina smiled. “Thank you for that.”_

_It was a stroke of good fortune that the next time Stephen and Lina met there was good news. “Stephen! I couldn't wait to talk to you. It turns out this was a false alarm. But I've been thinking, and we can't go on the way we've been. This time it turned out fine, but what about if we aren't so fortunate next time? I know how I feel about you, and you feel the same way about me. Is it really worth it for us to risk so much just so we have someone to spend time with?”_

    “ _I understand. I was thinking about something similar myself.” It felt like a relief that Lina was feeling the same way. While he may not have loved her enough to marry her, Stephen did care for her and had no desire to break her heart. “I hope that some day you are able to find someone who will be everything you want.”_

_She gave him a smile and replied “The same thing applies to you.”_

_And it was later on in the week that Stephen chose to head out to a particular place he had heard of. He'd realized that having another relationship like he did with Lina was not what he wished for, but his eventual destination was not one he felt comfortable going to either. This was a place that reached out to a part of himself he was not certain he felt good about._

_Around the time Stephen had first started noticing girls, he also began to realize that he liked the way some of his male classmates looked as well. This was frightening to him – he'd never known of such a thing happening. Men liked women, and women liked men. That was how it always was. But as he grew older he kept on having feelings for both of them. He did not know what made him different than all the other people he knew, but as Stephen went through college and medical school he started to hear things about people like him. And he also learned about places where said people would meet. Now standing before one of those places, he took a deep breath and prepared to walk in._

_In spite of not having been to a place like this before, Stephen did have experience being intimate with another man. It had happened in college, when he had been drinking with a friend. The experience had proven to him that his feelings for men were no different than those for women, and that it was almost impossible for him to choose between the two. The fact that there was virtually no way he could ever end up with a man in the end weighed heavily on Stephen's heart._

_He hadn't known what to expect once he walked in, but except for the fact that there weren't as many people as he thought the place looked like any other bar did. He stood near the entrance for a few minutes, trying to work up his nerves. He didn't really fit in in a place like this, since everything he'd heard about it was about how it was for men who were interested in other men. There was nothing about someone who happened to like both._

    “ _Hi. You're new, I see.” The man who had just come up to his side looked to be fairly close to Stephen's own age, perhaps a little older. He was starting to show signs of going bald already, which almost instinctively led Stephen to run his hand through his own hair._

    “ _How do you know that?”_

    “ _Because you've got the look almost everybody gets when they come here. I had it myself the first time I walked in the door. My name's Arnie, just so you know. Relax, the people here are great.”_

    “ _I'm Stephen,” he answered. “I'm not sure what I want to do now that I've worked up the nerve to actually come in.”_

    “ _You can just sit down and talk if that's all you're feeling up to. That's what I've been doing when I come here. I've had a couple of guys say they'd like to see me later on, but that's not something I'm ready for. Come with me to the bar and let's have a few drinks.”_

_That was something that Stephen knew he was going to like. He'd first tried alcohol as a teenager, and had rapidly gone to loving the way it made him feel. A few drinks probably were just what he needed to relax. “Then let's go.”_

_For the next few hours he and Arnie sat and chatted. He learned more about him, like how he had grown up in Brooklyn, had served in WWII, and had only recently started to accept that he had no interest in women. “After I got out of the navy, I saw a couple of girls before I really knew that I couldn't spend my life with any of them. I guess I'd kind of known that I was a homosexual since I was younger, but I kept trying to force myself to be like everyone else.”_

_It was one of the first times in his life that Stephen was able to talk about the way he was. “It was different for me. I like women a lot, but I've known for a long time that I have feelings for men, too. I wondered if I really belong in a place like this because of that. It feels confusing sometimes because I've never met anyone else who feels the same way I do.”_

    “ _Don't worry, there's some guys here who are like you. If I see one of them I'll let you know. All I've been doing since I started coming here is just talking to people. One guy asked if we could maybe meet elsewhere, but I don't think I'm ready for a step like that. I still have to worry about what people might do if things got to be serious in any way.”_

_Stephen nodded. He knew that was a real fear for someone like Arnie, especially because he did not have the option of finding a woman who he liked instead. “There's nothing wrong with just wanting to talk.” He started to share a few pieces of his life, brushing over most of the tragedy associated with his immediate family. “Now I'm in residency, and I'm planning on being a surgeon.”_

    “ _It looks like you're going to be doing pretty good for yourself in the long term. Do you think you'll end up getting married some day?”_

    “ _I wish I knew the answer to that.” Stephen looked away as he spoke._

_From that point they spent the rest of the night talking and sharing drinks. It was a surprise to Stephen to hear Arnie say that he really could just take or leave drinking, that it wasn't a big deal for him. How could people possibly not enjoy one of the best things you could do?_

_Once it started to get late, a mutual decision was made to leave. Impulsively, Stephen leaned over to give Arnie a brief kiss before leaving. “Maybe we'll see each other again some day.”_

_He replied with “Come back again soon.”_

_But he never did. The very first thing he heard when he arrived at the hospital the next morning was “Dr. Noble wants to see you in his office, immediately.”_

_Stephen wondered what this could be about. Dr. Noble seemed to be a decent enough supervisor, and he had been fairly attentive to him during the relatively brief time they had worked together. He couldn't think of any mistakes he had made recently, and only could think to say when he walked into Dr. Noble's office “Is there something that you need from me?”_

_The look on his face was grim. “Strange. Please sit down.” Once he was seated, the doctor went on to say “Everyone I have spoken with has said that you are one of our most dedicated doctors, that you are tireless in doing what needs to be done. I myself have been watching you with the greatest of hopes. That is why what has come to my attention is such a disappointment to me.”_

    “ _What would that be?” By now he was starting to panic inside._

_He gave Stephen a pointed look and said “You went out last night, did you not?”_

_He blinked. “Yes, I had a few drinks last night.” (A bit more than a few, but that didn't really matter.) “But as you can see, I am here today and will have no problems doing my duties.”_

_Dr. Noble waved his hand. “Yes, I normally have no issue with a young man going out and enjoying himself. But when someone is choosing to engage in degeneracy, then I cannot allow myself to stay silent.”_

_Stephen couldn't breathe. “What do you mean?”_

_He folded his hands on his desk. “Last night, I happened to observe you leaving an establishment that is known to be a gathering place for homosexuals. Furthermore, I also saw you kissing a man as you were leaving. Now, we must say that if this were to become known to anyone that would have extremely negative consequences for your career aspirations, would it not?”_

_It felt like the floor was collapsing under him. There was no hope left for him. If what had happened last night became known to anyone else, then he would almost certainly be dismissed from the hospital, and his chances of finding any other work in the medical field would be non-existent. All that he had worked for would be for naught._

_As he remained silent, Dr. Noble went on to say “There are two choices here. The first one is that I go to the board and inform them about your activities, and see what they do to you.”_

_Stephen waited for what the other option was going to be, and finally broke his silence by saying “And the second?”_

_He gave a strange smile and said “The second outcome would involve you coming to my home as soon as you have finished your shift, and then from there we can discuss how to handle this matter. Now tell me. Which of the two will you choose?”_

_While things such as this were not talked about in polite society, Stephen had an idea of what it was he was going to be doing if he took the latter option. But the prospect of losing all he had spent so much time working for felt even worse. “The second.”_

_Dr. Noble flashed his smile towards Stephen, a smile he had seen on multiple occasions before. “Then I look forward to discussing the matter with you.”_

_And when he finally returned to his own home after his visit to Noble's home ended, aching all over, the first thing Stephen did was head directly towards the cabinet where he kept his supply of alcohol and drink until he could no longer stay awake._

_And it was fine. It really was. He had managed to survive one of the worst challenges to his career that he could ever imagine facing, and he'd learned an important lesson about keeping his desires under wraps._

_Besides, it was only once, he reminded himself over and over._

_Yet at a meeting to discuss a patient later on that same week, Stephen ended up having to sit next to Dr. Noble. His heart began to beat faster, but he reminded himself that he needed to remain in control of his emotions._

_At first everything was fine, but after a while he began to feel the feeling of a hand stroking his thigh. Stephen worked to keep his expression as neutral as possible, but as the hand went higher and higher he whispered as softly as he could “Not here.”_

_His hand withdrew, and he replied with “Later, then,” in a voice as soft as Stephen's own. And since he knew that if he did not go the risk of what he had done being reported was high, he came back a second time._

_From that point onward it was an ever present threat. If Dr. Noble wanted to speak with Stephen about things more often than usual, most people didn't think of it as being too unusual. Why wouldn't a superior want to talk with someone he was supervising, especially one like Stephen who was seen as being extraordinarily gifted?_

_To keep his nerves at bay, he took to keeping around a bottle of alcohol whenever he was on duty. One day as he was taking a drink, he looked up to see Dr. Noble standing there with a smile on his face. “Hitting the bottle a little early today, aren't we Strange?”_

_And later on that day, he went into Dr. Noble's office entirely of his own free will. There had been no requests to come and speak with him, but Stephen hoped that if he could make him happy then there would be nothing to worry about in regards to either his drinking or his bar visit being reported to the wrong people. This time felt more shameful than any of the other times, as he couldn't even say that he'd been asked to come. Yes, before he'd never been forced into doing anything, but at least he had not been the initiator. This time was all on him._

_Another major change happened following the first time he had been with Dr. Noble. Stephen had always enjoyed sex, and while his experience with men was far below that of women the time he had been with a man had been enjoyable. But after the time he had saved his world, it was like a switch had flipped. Only a couple of days later, Stephen had gone out and picked up a woman. And once they had finished, he went looking for someone else._

_Now when he wasn't working, it was his all-encompassing mission to go out and sleep with as many people as he could, at least when he wasn't at home drinking. It was only a few days after it all began that Stephen ended up in bed with a man, and from that point onward he went looking for both men and women when he went out. At times he thought about how ironic it was that now he was looking for men when he had never chanced it before, but Stephen normally shrugged that off._

_He slept with men, women, and both at the same time. It always felt like just once in a night was never enough – he needed at least two or three times to feel satisfied. He once said that even a whole room of people might not be enough to leave him satiated, and was entirely serious when he said that. His lovers often said he was insatiable, and he never denied that. And gradually his attitudes towards them shifted. For a period of time Stephen at least tried to make some kind of connection with the person he had sex with, but eventually it just went down to “Want to go home together?” and not much more. He did tend to feel guilty at first, but as time went on he was able to push those feelings away._

_Perhaps it was related to what he was doing outside of work, or it might have come from seeing that even all of his knowledge and skill was not enough to save patients – it could have been either one. But Stephen was beginning to have a serious change in his personality. He'd always felt confident in his abilities as a doctor, but now he was always certain that he was the best. He was far more critical of anyone who did not meet his lofty standards, which was pretty much everyone. People started to talk about how arrogant he was becoming, but Stephen didn't care._

_When his residency ended, he sought out a different hospital to work in. He told people if they asked that the reason he was doing so was so that he could take his talents to the place that needed them the most, and that here there was no place for surgeon such as him here. If one had asked him if he was telling the truth, Stephen would have said yes without even hesitating once. After all, if what had gone on between him and Dr. Noble had affected him, then why was he running out to sleep with so many people now? If it had been something bad, then he would be avoiding anything like that, would he not?_

_There was talk about him, about how Stephen was an arrogant bastard, about how he was without morals and would do anything with anyone. There were whispers about how he had slept his way to the top, and a tiny part of him knew that it was all true in a way. But none of that mattered to him, not even how his second-favorite activity after sex was drinking, not until the one day he got behind the wheel of his car..._

* * *

 

    Vision had been spending the last few hours doing all the research he could do on one Edwin Noble. The majority of his initial results had been talking about various medical endeavors the man had been involved with, along with an occasional quote in regards to a patient who might have been in the news for whatever reason. His tension rose with each result, as he kept on thinking that any moment now he was going to come upon a story detailing how much of a monster the man was and how he had gotten his just deserts. But he had to admit to himself that something like that would have come up far sooner in the results than he had already gotten to.

    A part of Vision wondered if he had gotten the wrong idea from what Stephen had told him. Nothing definite had been said, and given how drunk he had been when the story was conveyed it was possible the wrong impression had been given. But he doubted this.

    A thought came to his mind. Maybe the results would be different if he changed the parameters of the search. Currently he was looking for “Dr. Edwin Noble”. Would just using his name bring up differing results?

    It worked, although not as Vision had planned for it to. The first go-round gave him so many results that he had to try and narrow it down somehow. Stephen's words about the witch being dead were the first thing he thought of, and added “obituary” to the search.

    He hit pay-dirt on the second page. There was a page that had a brief write-up on the death of one Edwin Noble, who was roughly of the right age to have been the one Stephen knew. (It was not pleasant seeing that a man like him had lived to be over a hundred, but at least he was finally gone.) The part that was the most important, at least to Vision, was the comments that were left by the people who had known the man over the years.

    The first grouping of comments were the usual fare, generic “rip”'s and “sorry for your loss”. None of them showed any real familiarity with the man, so Vision doubted many were close to him. Halfway down the page was when the comments started to shift.

_Rest in pieces_ , the first one said. And from there it was a deluge.

_Heard the rumors about him. Hoped they weren't true but after he left..._

_My uncle worked for him once. Never was the same afterwards. He once said that he shouldn't have let something about his orientation slip. I can guess why._

_Guess it's true that the good die young. Can't think of any other reason this asshole would live so long._

    But there was one that told a lengthy story, and as he read it Vision fully understood what had happened to Stephen all those years ago.

_When I was a resident at the hospital where Dr. Noble worked, around twenty years ago, I was surprised to be called to meet with him one day. I was having no issues with either my patients or other staff members so I saw little reason for us to speak. After I got to the office, he told me that he was aware that I was living with another woman and unless I agreed to meet with him at his home later on he would make certain that everyone was aware of it. He was clearly stuck in the past, because my first stop was instead to the board to report him for harassing me. After a period of time, they managed to convince Dr. Noble to retire now so that he could avoid facing more consequences for what had happened with me. I wasn't happy with this, believe me, but I know that I should be grateful that they listened to me instead of protecting him. I can tell by reading all the comments here that I wasn't the only one, and that breaks my heart._

    Vision sat staring at the story for some time. Based on what he saw, he had a reasonably good guess of what exactly had happened with Stephen. At some point that vile man had learned that Stephen was bisexual, and had used that knowledge to force him into sex. He hoped that it had only been once, but knew too much about people like that to really think that was the case.

    The facts of the matter became worse as he continued to think about them. Given the time in which all of this had taken place, there had been no chance that Stephen could have received any kind of support if he had reported anything. This kind of abuse simply wasn't something that was discussed openly, and where could he have turned to get help? Dr. Noble clearly would have had no problem telling the whole world that he liked men as well as women, and that piece of information would have been enough to ruin Stephen's career. So he had been forced to suffer in silence for all those years.

    But perhaps the worst of all this was how little he could do. Stephen had not been all that forthcoming even while under the influence, and Vision wasn't certain that he would even remember their conversation later on. And what he had learned was the kind of thing that you would only feel comfortable talking about with someone who you were very close to. He did not have that type of relationship with Stephen, so even if he did recall what he had told Vision today it still might not be wise to pursue the matter.

    He headed back to Mother's, still not certain of how to deal with what he had learned. To his surprise, Wanda was already there. “I didn't expect you to be back so late. Was something wrong?” She looked him over and responded with. “Dark-eyes, what's wrong? Did something happen with Stephen?”

    “Yes... but I cannot tell you what it was. It is unfortunately far too difficult for me to explain to you right now.” He hated not being able to tell his wife the whole story, but if he could not share any of this with Stephen then there was no way Vision could tell Wanda the whole story.

    She placed her arm around him. “I know that it had to be something awful for you to look so terrible. Stephen, how was he doing? Did he at least look like he'd been eating more?”

    “I did notice that he looked to be a great deal thinner than he was the last time I saw him. However, without knowing what Stephen looked like prior to today I have no way of knowing whether or not he is any different than what you saw last time.” Vision doubted there had been much change based on Wanda's reports of Stephen's demeanor and what he had seen today, but did not want to make her more worried than she already was.

    She sighed. “I feel foolish for hoping that something is going to change, but it hurts so much to see Stephen suffering and not being able to help him. I still don't know if it would be better to just go and find someone who is able to give him the help he needs without waiting for him to ask for it. I feel like if I do go that far it's not going to be as helpful as having Stephen take those steps himself. But then again... what if things get worse than they already are? Then what?”

    He had no easy answers for her. “For now I feel the best course of action is to trust your instincts. If you feel that Stephen is slipping too far, then it is time to consider greater action.” Vision then asked her “Do you know how things went with Anna today?”

    Wanda looked grateful for the change in subject. “Very well. While there wasn't a decision made today she said her lawyers told her everything sounded good. So now she's just got to wait for the actual court hearing. Anna also told me that she's filled out the adoption paperwork for Teddy and was able to produce that when the officer asked questions about him. That can't be taken care of until the final court hearing has taken place, but having everything in order now will help to speed things up when the time comes.”

    “That's good. Did Anna explain why she is working to adopt Teddy now? Before she said that she didn't feel comfortable taking that step because she wasn't certain about what Anelle's fate was.”

    “She implied that she spoke with someone who gave her the news that Anelle had been dead for years. I have an idea of who that person might be, and if that's the case the reason Anna didn't say more is pretty clear to me.”

    It felt good to hear that someone who was so important to them was getting at least some good news. Vision hoped that Anna would continue to have things work out for her, and that something would shift in Stephen's life soon.

    He hoped it would go in the right direction.

 


	14. Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For whatever reason, I feel more nervous about this chapter than I have for any others. I hope that it still meets the expected standard.

    The sound of the doorbell ringing was one that Crystal welcomed. She hadn't had any guests over since she started staying with Dane. She'd gone to see Pietro twice, and while both Hank and Reed had come over they had been there for other reasons than just company. Jan had said she could drop in at some point, but Crystal still didn't feel close enough to her for a visit like that. Maybe later on...

    She opened the door and said with a smile, “It's been a while, Johnny.”

    Johnny Storm had been one of the first humans that she had grown to know, and Crystal still thought that he was the one who had triggered her interest in humanity at large. He was one of the most fun-loving people she knew, and when she had been younger that had seemed like just the thing she wanted out of life. For a brief period of time she'd even thought they were meant for each other, but over time Crystal realized that they could not work out in the long term.

    He gave her a grin and said “Hi, Crystal. How have you been?”

    “Fairly good, for the most part. I've even gotten to see Luna a few times. So far we haven't actually spoken, though. Mostly when I come over she stays for a bit and then goes off with Lockjaw.”

    Johnny said “Yeah, I saw him sleeping outside. How's Dane dealing with him?”

    “Pretty well. He's stocked up on food and has set up a bed for him in the barn with Aragorn. It's been a bit of a surprise to me that he hasn't gone back to Attilan by now. I never would have thought he likes it here so much.”

    “Well, look at it from a dog's perspective. Here he can go and smell so many more things than at home, there are other animals around, and there's a lot more space to run around. Since apparently Lockjaw doesn't feel the same consequences you do by being here there isn't much of a reason he wouldn't want to stay here.”

    Crystal hadn't really thought about it that way. “I was thinking it might have had something to do with Luna. He's always loved her, and the times I've gone to see her he's always gone right to her before anything else. And she was one of the only ones who would play with him back at home, besides Black Bolt that is.”

    “Yeah, you could be right about that.” Johnny paused for a moment before asking “Have you heard anything from home, besides when Medusa called us early on?”

    “No,” she said with anger flowing into her voice. “And I'm grateful for that. Hopefully that means no one is looking for me.”

    “I think that if they were then we might have heard something more by now. Or at least Medusa would have tried to go and look among the Avengers.”

    Hearing that left Crystal with mixed feelings. On one hand, she was glad that no one was trying to force her to come back and do her duty. But on the other hand, it hurt to think that no one she had known in Attilan cared enough about her to try and find out where she might be. It made her feel unusual to think about what that said both about her and those she had left behind.

    Eventually she said “And even if things got better, if Medusa told me that I didn't have to marry Ronan any longer, I still wouldn't go back. The more I think about my old home the more I realize that I want to be here. There's so much for me to see and experience here.”

    He nodded, and asked “Do you have any plans for the future?”

    “Right now I'm just trying to help out with the mansion. But I really am hoping that once the new Avengers team gets together that I can be an active member. I doubt that's going to happen, since I've spent a while away and I didn't go and help them out when they needed me. But it would be nice if I could.” Crystal doubted that the team would be upset over her inability to show up when they'd needed her, but she did know that it was most likely going to play a role in the decisions over the roster. Who would you rather have – someone who'd always been there, or someone that you weren't sure you could rely upon?

    Johnny didn't say anything to respond to that. He ended up asking “So how have you been feeling? Reed's sorry he couldn't be here for the first treatment, but stuff came up. Have you needed to take any of the pills?”

    “I still took them for the first few days, just because I was scared the treatment wasn't going to work. Then I stopped to see what was going to happen. So far this has been the longest time I've been here on Earth without having to take anything. It all feels so unreal. Not just that,” she felt the need to clarify, “but everything that's happened since I came to Dane's. It's like the rug is going to be pulled from under me at any second, and I need to savor every moment that I have.”

    That seemed to spark understanding in him. “What with what ended up happening to you, I can't blame you for being so wary. You came so close to being in a place where you couldn't get out, or being hurt badly where you felt safe.”

    The way he was speaking made Crystal feel uneasy about how much he knew. “What did Sue tell you about what happened?”

    “Just that Ronan went so far that you knew you weren't going to be safe with him. Nothing else. I guessed that if you really wanted to give details you'd tell me personally.” He placed his hands up in a gesture showing he meant no harm.

     “No, it's okay. I'm still a little jumpy about everything.” This frustrated Crystal to no end. Time had passed – why was she still thinking about what happened when Ronan had lost it with her?

    Johnny looked her directly in the eyes and asked “Are you afraid that he might be the one who comes to find you, not anyone from Attilan?”

    “Of course. I know that he doesn't know all that much about who I might be staying with, but he does know that Luna's living with Pietro now. I can see him trying to go after her so that he could get to me.” She knew that if something were to happen to Luna as a result of her running away that she could never forgive herself.

    “But Pietro knows you're here, and I'm sure that he wouldn't let anything happen to Luna without a big fight. And he can call on the Avengers if he needs to for help.”

    It may have seemed so simple to Johnny, but Crystal doubted that it would be that easy. Yes, Pietro could go and summon the Avengers quickly – but they wouldn't be able to get there as fast as he could go. The only one who could make it in an instant would be Monica, and while she was one of the more powerful members of the team could she stand against Ronan for an extended time alone?

    Crystal decided to bring up the idea that Hank had given her when he came. “Do you know what Hank said I should do in order to stay here?”

    Shaking his head, Johnny said “What would that be?”

    “Get married to someone who lives here. That way I could stay here as long as I like, and if someone from home were to come after me, then I'd have a reason to tell them why it wasn't possible for me.”

    The idea looked to be a bit of a shock to him. “What do you think about that?”

    “At first I wasn't all that sure about it. But the more I think about how things are, the more I start warming up to the idea. No one on Attilan can force me to get a divorce here, and I would have a real status beyond that of an Avenger.” Crystal only wished she knew who could be the one she took that step with. She knew at least two people that it couldn't be, and one of them was standing in front of her now.

    Johnny replied “Have you asked anyone if they would be willing to do it?”

    “Two people. I first spoke with Dane, and he explained that he wanted to get married to someone that he really was in love with, and I'm not that person. He did say that if there was no other option that he'd think about it again.” The second one was at least a bit of a funny story. “The last time I was at the mansion Tony dropped in, so I ended up asking _him_ if he'd be willing to marry me. After he managed to stop laughing, he explained why that wouldn't be a good idea.”

    “What did he say was the problem?”

    “For starters, since Tony's got so much money someone marrying him just to gain legal status would be a lot more likely to be noticed. A non-citizen marrying a citizen is something that has the potential for fraud, and when it's a person that you don't know all that well it comes across as being even worse. All that fuss really wouldn't be worth what I'd get out of it.”

    There had been another reason Tony had given her for not accepting her proposal. He'd explained how he wasn't really known for having the best outcome when it came to relationships, and he didn't want to put Crystal through that fuss. In her eyes, she had thought that Tony was more likely to wind up being hurt by whoever it was he chose to date. She'd only seen a few of those people, but her recollection of the ones she had seen was not all that positive.

    Johnny absorbed what she had said for a minute or two. At last he asked “Do you think that I should be the one to do it?”

    Based on the look on his face, Crystal could tell that he already knew the answer. “No.”

    “Can I ask why?”

    She took a deep breath. “Well, to start with there's our history. People are going to be wondering why we've suddenly taken such a big step without being around each other first. Everyone who knows us both knows that we haven't had feelings that would warrant marriage for a very long time. If I'm trying to make sure that everyone back home think that I have some real ties to Earth now, it's not going to help if I'm suddenly going and getting with someone it's been so long without anything happening. In order for this to seem legitimate, I need to have the person be someone that I can point to spending time with, to make it seem like a more logical decision. Also, you would be one of the easiest places in the world for someone to go and find me at, someone who wouldn't hesitate to hurt you and everyone around you.” (Who that person would be she didn't have to say. They both knew.)

    The less-than-logical part of her mind also was still hoping that whoever it was would also have some feelings for her that went beyond obligation, but that was far too much to hope for now.

    “That makes sense, but I doubt that's the only reason. What else is there?”

    This part wasn't going to be easy, but Crystal was confident she could explain. “The other major reason is the way that we are. Back when we first met, you were the kind of person that I liked to be around. It felt like we wanted the same things in life. But that was back then. We've both changed, and that's caused us to become further apart. The things that we wanted then – those are still the same things that you value. If I was still the way I was before, we'd be a perfect match. But I've changed. If I were to go and get married to you, we wouldn't be able to get along the same way we did before. I still want to keep my friendship with you, Johnny, and if I married you there's a good chance that we would wind up hating each other at the end of all this.”

    She'd been afraid of what Johnny was going to think when she said this. Thankfully, his expression seemed to be relieved. “I'm glad you said that. I was thinking a little while ago about when you were a member of the Avengers, and I wondered why I hadn't gone to see you then. I thought that maybe it was because of Pietro, but now I don't think that was really the case. Truth is, I just don't feel like I really know you anymore. Not that I'm not happy to come and see you today, but it's just not the same as it used to be. And during that time frame I've gone and gotten married myself.” His face showed a brief flash of pain as he spoke the words. “If I decide to go out and do it again, then I want to make sure that everything is just like it should be. Dane was right to tell you that. If he doesn't think that he has what it takes to marry you, then he should be honest about it.” 

    “That was what I was thinking, too.”

    “When you said that we've changed since we first met, it made me think about how things would have gone if you had chosen me all those years ago,” Johnny pondered.

    “I have an idea. There's no way we could have made things work out in the long run.” Hearing those words felt freeing to Crystal. She may not have felt the same way about Johnny she had in the past, but hurting him was not something she wanted to do. “I know that whoever I end up choosing I'm going to have to live with. So that's got to play a role in how things turn out.”

    “It makes sense.” He put his hand to his chin. “Let me go over what you're looking for in a potential husband. You want someone who is going to understand why you want to do this, and isn't going to ask for more.”

    Crystal was slightly surprised that he had gotten that from all she had said. “That's right.”

    “And this someone needs to be a person you feel comfortable spending time with.”

    “Right,” she said. By now she suspected this was leading into something, but what it was still eluded her.

    “Also, he needs to be someone it won't look too out of the blue for you to get together with, so that there won't be any questions raised about why this is happening. So he should also be someone that you've known for a while.”

    “Johnny, what are you getting at?” The direct approach felt like the best way to learn what he was trying to say.

    “I think I might have an idea for who you could choose.”

    That had not been what she was thinking she would hear. “Who would that be?” Crystal asked. She was feeling uneasy, wondering if the answer was going to be something horribly wrong.

    Johnny took a deep breath. “How about Pietro?”

    Pietro? Crystal wasn't sure what to say in response to that. At last she said “Why?”

    “Well, to start off with you know him already. You've seen him since coming to Earth, right?” Crystal was about to say that she'd only gone to see him because of her desire to see Luna, but as she thought about it she noticed that each time she'd been there she hadn't left once it was clear Luna still was not willing to speak with her. Pietro and her had just talked, and it wasn't a bad experience. He didn't seem like he was upset over what had happened between them, and he sounded like he liked having her there.

    As an answer, she chose to nod.

    “So the two of you don't mind spending time with each other. That's really important. I mean, you'd have to live with whoever you married, and it's not going to be fun if he's not someone you can even talk to. And out of everybody you know he would be the least surprising if you decided to marry him. All you'd have to say is that you just reconnected. It would make sense.”

    All she could think to say in response was “How do you know that he would be willing to do this?” Even as she spoke, Crystal doubted that Pietro would be that selfish. In spite of his less-pleasant qualities, she knew that he was always willing to help out those he cared about.

    (Honestly, she thought that a lot of his negative traits were somewhat exaggerated by people who didn't like him. If Pietro had really been as horrible as people said he was she knew that she never would have married him.)

    “Well, I bet if you explained why you were doing it he'd be understanding. And after a while, once you'd been firmly established here, then the both of you could just go your separate ways. All you'd have to say is that things didn't work out again. Easy enough to do.”

    Johnny was certainly making sense here. It would be fairly easy to just go and say things didn't work out after a period of time had passed. The issue of how things were going to end was one that Crystal had thought about on a handful of occasions. She didn't want to leave her husband tied down to her, given that he most likely wasn't going to love her the way you should love someone. But when they did need to separate, there had to be a valid reason given for why things hadn't worked out. With Pietro, there was a perfect out.

    But as she thought about it, Crystal only could go back to the past and the things she had done. Why would Pietro be willing to help her out, given how badly she had hurt him before? Yes, he'd been nothing but polite and friendly when she had either spoken with him or come to visit, but couldn't that just be explained by him not wanting to create a scene around Luna. How could he not hate her after all that had happened?

    Some of this must have been written on her face, because Johnny then asked “Crystal, are you alright? You look like you're a million miles away.”

    “Just thinking about what you suggested, that's all.”

    “I hope I didn't offend you by mentioning the idea of you marrying Pietro again. I didn't realize that you would be so strongly against the idea.”

    She said “No, that's not it. It's just that you sprung this on me pretty suddenly, and I'm still trying to figure out how I feel about it.”

    Johnny asked her “Do you think that you would feel uncomfortable with him, or that it's just not something that would work for you?”

    “No, it's not really either of those things.”

    “Then what is it?”

    Crystal wasn't certain what she could say for some time. Eventually she said “I don't want to hurt him again.” She'd turned away from Johnny as she spoke the words.

    “I understand.” When she turned to face him once more, she could tell that he wasn't lying when he said that. But there was something else in his expression, as if he knew something that Crystal did not. She almost outright asked him what it was he was thinking about, but there was a part of her that really didn't want to know the answer.

    So she just said “I'm glad that you do,” and left it at that.

* * *

 

    By the time Johnny left, Crystal was glad to see him go. After he'd brought up the idea of who she should marry, the two of them had struggled to find common ground to talk about. It made her feel sad to think of how someone she'd once thought might be the love of her life she now couldn't hold an extended conversation with. It did confirm the idea she had about how her life might have been if she'd made a different choice years ago, and Crystal did feel pleased with realizing she'd done the right thing then.

    Her mind went back to Pietro, and how even now there weren't the same awkward silences between them that she and Johnny were having now. Did that mean that she could go forward with a marriage of convenience with him?

    But her mind could only conjure up an image of Pietro looking disgusted she had bothered to ask such a thing of him.  _How could I ever trust or care for you again?_ she heard echoing in her mind.

    Even though he'd been there less than an hour, Johnny got up to leave. “Sorry this didn't work out like I hoped it would. Maybe some other time we can talk for real.” He didn't sound like he thought that was going to happen.

    “We could try going somewhere instead of just hanging around alone. That might help.” Crystal knew the words were fairly hollow, as she doubted they would want to go to the same places anymore. It did sting a bit to realize that they no longer had the same bond they had in the past, but Crystal knew that there wasn't much she could do about it, unless she was willing to change herself back to what she had been before.

    “Maybe. Sue wants you to come over sometime, alright?”

    “Tell her that I'll try to come by as soon as I know no one's going to be looking for me there.”

    “I'll let her know. See you, Crystal.”

    Something else that she had noticed during Johnny's visit was how he referred to her. Before, when they had first met each other, he'd normally called her “Crys”. The formality of her full name further served to highlight how far they had gone apart.

    It wasn't too long before Dane came back. He'd told her earlier that day that if it was easier for her that he would head out while Johnny was there. She hadn't really cared all that much, but evidently he'd thought a little privacy would be welcome. “So how did things go?” was the first thing Dane asked her.

    “Not as great as I would have liked. Johnny and I aren't really on the same page anymore. It's a bit hard to know that someone who you were so close to once isn't really the same way now. I mean, I know that people change over time but you do kind of wish that you could always stay close to people.”

    “I can remember when I ran into a guy who was one of my closest friends during school a few years back. At first we were so happy to see each other, and decided to go and catch up on things later on. But after a while we just couldn't connect the same way we had before. Felt a bit like a stage in my life was ending.”

    Crystal wondered “What happened with him later on? Did you ever get together again?”

    “Once or twice. I'd say that now we're more like casual friends rather than the inseparable duo we were when we were younger. When I accepted that things weren't the same, but that didn't mean that I needed to drop him from my life, then it became easier. I bet you and Johnny will end up falling into the same pattern,” Dane stated.

    “I'm sure we will. Things are just awkward right now.” She then changed the subject a bit. “I did end up talking with Johnny about Hank's idea.”

    “What did he have to say about it?”

    “He had a suggestion for who I might be able to choose. I'm not certain how I feel about it, though.”

    Dane didn't ask her who the person was. She guessed he could tell that she didn't want to talk about it now. “Just so that you know, if in about a month or so you still haven't been able to find a suitable candidate for marriage, then I'll reconsider my not wanting to do it. I don't think that it would be the best outcome for all concerned, but if there's no other option then I'll step up to the plate.”

    “I'm sure that it won't be necessary.” Crystal hoped she was right. The idea of forcing Dane into a marriage that was going to be entirely for convenience's sake rather than mutual affection was one that made her stomach turn. She knew that if they were to marry, that their relationship would not last and that it might spell the lethal blow to their friendship as well.

    “Well, I just want you to know that I'll help you out if it becomes essential.”

    While Dane intended for his words to come across as being comforting, they instead served to make Crystal feel guilty. She knew that he was trying his hardest to help her out, but all she was doing was not going to make things better. She resolved to find someone before the time-frame had passed.

    But who that person would be remained a mystery to her. Out of all the men she knew on the Avengers, only Dane, Tony, and Pietro were in any way familiar to her.

    The very thought of Pietro brought her mind back to what Johnny had suggested. And Crystal had to admit he had made a fairly good case for why it might be a good idea. Out of all the people she knew, he was the one who would raise the least amount of questions if she ended up marrying him again. Wouldn't it make sense that two people who had once loved each other might reconnect once they were able to be together again?

    Further thinking on the issue, Crystal realized she could quite easily see Pietro fitting into her life once more. Johnny had made a valid point when he pointed out that the two of them didn't mind spending time together, something she knew was true. It struck her as odd how she was able to spend so much time with Pietro without the two of them yelling at each other. She couldn't understand how at the very least he wasn't cool to her. She doubted that he would have chosen to end things the way they did, and that should have left him bitter towards her. But each time they'd been around the other things were normally amicable, with the exception of the first couple of times following the end of their marriage. So Crystal could imagine them being able to settle into some manner of domestic life if she were to choose Pietro.

    Yet in spite of what Johnny had said about how he would be willing to help her if she were to explain things, Crystal still was afraid of asking. Hearing Pietro refuse to assist her in this way was going to hurt more than she would like it to. Yes, he hadn't been asked anything yet and there was still a chance he would be receptive to the proposal – but she refused to give herself unwarranted hope. And besides, there was the same reason that she was so reluctant to just go and wait for Dane's idea to come about. Why would she want to deny Pietro the chance to meet someone that he would truly love and make a life with them?

    Now she was reminded of how she had planned on calling him later on, just to see when the best time for her to see Luna next would be. Her mind was telling her,  _And just how much of Luna are you going to see? You know that she's still not wanting to talk to you,_ but Crystal forced herself not to think about that.

    Well, maybe she would get lucky and he wouldn't answer his phone. That was cut off fairly quickly as it only took one ring before she could hear Pietro's voice saying “Hello?”

    “It's just me,” Crystal said, not wanting to sound too demanding.

    “Oh, I wasn't expecting you to call today. How have you been?”

    Pietro sounded so friendly that Crystal started to wonder if she might be able to work up the nerve to ask him her question. “Alright, I suppose. Johnny came over to see me today, but it wasn't as enjoyable as I would have liked it to be.”

     “I'm sorry to hear that. I know that the two of you were so close once.” For a moment Crystal wondered if what she was hoping to ask might not be easier if Pietro didn't sound so understanding when they spoke. Annoyance or anger would be easier to understand than kindness was.

    “I guess that we've just grown too far apart over the years to really be as close as we were. I kind of thought something like that might happen, but when he told me that he wanted to come over it sounded like it could be fun.”

     Pietro paused before he spoke again. “Sometimes I've wondered what it would be like if I were to go and meet with some of the friends I had as a child. I doubt that we'd have all that much in common anymore, but I hate the idea of losing a part of your life like that. So even though it shouldn't be a problem for me to find them, I can't bring myself to do it. It's like I'm keeping some option open that I know is never going to work out, but when it's there you feel better having it.”

    The words felt like an echo of Crystal's own thoughts, ones she realized she hadn't even known she had. The mention of those Pietro had known in the past made her wonder why she'd never bothered to ask more questions about things in his life before they met. If she had done so, hadn't been so short sighted...

    Shaking her head, Crystal said “I was thinking about coming over and trying to speak with Luna tomorrow. How has she been doing lately?”

    He sighed. “A mixed bag. On the positive side, she's excited about starting school this fall and she hasn't said anything bad about you. But I still can't get her to talk about how she feels about you being here. I've told her that she needs to go and speak with you at some point, but you know how Luna can be. And forcing her to go and do it is just going to make it more likely she'll go and say something hurtful.” Pietro continued with “Besides the fact that you really shouldn't have to hear that, I know that Luna is going to wind up regretting her words eventually, and I don't want her hurting any more than I would want you to feel that way, Crys.”

    Crystal found herself smiling as she heard her nickname. There was a feeling of warmth and understanding in speaking to Pietro that almost made her wonder if it would be worth her while to go and ask her question. What she did end up saying was “Is there a time that would be best for me to come over?”

    “Whenever would be best for you is fine. I have no plans for anything tomorrow, so it shouldn't be all that much trouble for you to drop in. I'll just let Luna know you're coming.”

    “Then I'll see you then.” And before she could say anything else, Crystal hung up.

_It's not like it would have mattered if you asked,_ she told herself. The idea that Pietro might be willing to marry her seemed laughable now. There was no reason for him to accept, and the sooner she got that through her head the better it would be.

    But the slight hollow feeling that Crystal now felt inside took longer to leave.

* * *

 

    It was nearly the end of a long journey.

    Ronan had unfortunately not been able to immediately head off to Earth and track down his foolish bride. There were thing that he had needed to take care of, especially since the planned alliance with the Inhumans was no longer going to take place. But he could be very patient. Crystal almost certainly wasn't going anywhere.

    So as he approached Earth, he thought about how much simpler it would have been if the stupid woman hadn't decided to go and attack him. Then they would already be wed, and Ronan could get to work on crushing that stubborn streak right out of her. There was too much of his time that he was now being forced to wait in getting what he deserved.

    Honestly, at first he'd just been surprised at the proposal Medusa had put before him. Yet upon seeing the shocked look on Crystal's face when she first heard the idea, Ronan had started to want her. There had always been an aspect of thrilling in having another submit to your will, but among the Kree there were none that he thought of as deserving such a fate.

    Crystal... now there was a very different story. Perhaps if she had seemed to be more eager to marry him he might have taken a lighter hand with her. Since she had shown a degree of reluctance, he knew that any necessary measures had to be taken. The first step had been to make certain that there was no one else who she could reach out to. The girl had been the biggest problem there. She was not fond of him, and Ronan did not wish to deal with a child that was not his own. (He wasn't all that pleased at the thought of dealing with his own children, either, but they at least would have the right blood in their veins.)

    Sending the child to her father served two purposes for Ronan. First of all, it left Crystal with one less person to turn to. But the best part was that she no longer needed to either see or speak with her ex-husband. He knew that he wouldn't like Pietro Maximoff even if there wasn't his history with his wife to consider, and he knew that he would cause trouble if he were to learn too much. Crystal running off to go help the Avengers had not made him happy, as Ronan could picture the two of them talking with an ease he could not seem to get, and maybe even reach out for each other. Even the idea of such a thing made him shake with rage, so it was fortunate that he had been able to get Medusa to agree to keep Crystal away from Pietro.

    And after doing so, Ronan started to notice that Crystal didn't seem all that close to any of the Inhumans. Naturally there was her sister and brother-in-law, but outside of her family few people seemed to want to know her. This was perfect for him. He then set out to make sure that any Inhuman he encountered was completely charmed by him. It usually wasn't that difficult to get people to like you if you knew all the right things to say, and could also sound sincere. It was quite satisfying to hear people talk about how this time around Crystal had gotten herself a proper husband, not like her silly decision before.

    At some point he knew that he would go and tell her exactly what her people really thought of her, and might even go so far as to talk about how lucky she was to have her daughter at all. Picturing the look of devastation on her face sent a pleasant feeling down his spine.

    The hope had been that once he had managed to cut her off, then Crystal would start to turn to him for her needs. Unfortunately, it hadn't worked out that way. Once Ronan had learned that she was still in contact with Pietro he had his worst suspicions confirmed. She had never ended things with that man – after all, if she had there would be no reason for her to speak with him. If it wasn't necessary for him to keep a good image in front of Black Bolt and Medusa then he would have taught her a lesson she would not forget any time soon, but the circumstances were not working in his favor. So he had waited until he had the chance.

    There had even been a brief period of time when he'd thought that Crystal had learned that she was not to defy him. After she had forced him to take away her phone, she had been compliant with any requests he made. But then she'd gone as far as to demand that she have her child at their wedding! That day was going to be about him, not Crystal's silly brat. He shook his head, not wanting to think about it much more. His attention needed to fully be on the task before him.

    The first place that Ronan had planned on looking was wherever it was that Pietro lived. But as he thought about doing so, he realized that if Crystal did happen to be there they would be on the lookout for him. While he knew that he could easily take them both down in a stand-up fight, if there were other Avengers there it would be much harder.

    No, it was better to go and get more information first. And as he thought about it more, he knew just where he could go.

    He'd heard rumors of the possible presence of a son of Mar-Vell's living on Earth for a couple of years now. Most of the Kree weren't thrilled that he had chosen a Skrull woman to be with, but unlike the Skrulls no one care all that much as long as he didn't come to their home one day. Ronan hadn't given the story much thought until now – it made little difference in his life. Now that he found himself headed to Earth, it came to him that the woman who was looking after the child might be a potential ally.

    If he were to go and offer her a position of honor among his people, then she might be willing to share what she knew of Crystal's whereabouts. There might be some who looked askance at giving shelter to a Skrull, but wasn't achieving his goals more important than what others thought.

    Ronan started to chuckle to himself as he came closer and closer to Earth.  _Soon my dear Crystal... Soon..._

 


	15. With Arms Wide Open

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A birth leads to pondering and possible re-connections.

    It was at around eleven-thirty at night when Jessica Jones started to think that the uncomfortable feeling she was experiencing in her stomach might not have been the result of the three tacos she'd eaten for dinner that night.

    During the beginning of her pregnancy, she'd been certain that she would be able to tell the exact moment that she went into labor. What with how painful it was often described, you had to be able to tell quickly, right? Of course, as Jess had learned during the last two months there were so many different aches and pains you ended up getting towards the end of pregnancy that you ended up getting used to being uncomfortable. She'd been calling Stephen on multiple occasions to see if she should be concerned, although as of yet the answer was no.

    Jess hoped that if she needed to talk to him again that he was in a somewhat better mood than normal. She had noticed that almost all of the times during the last nine months that they had met in person Stephen typically looked rather unhappy. It bothered her a great deal, but she didn't know what she could say about it. Luke had seen the same thing, and had asked her once after a visit “Do you think that Doctor Strange is sick? Because every time I've seen him lately he hasn't looked well at all.”

    “I don't really think that I know him enough to say,” was the answer she'd given. For all Jess knew, Stephen just was one of those people who just had a look of sadness to them no matter what. She doubted it, and knew for a fact that Luke didn't believe it, but as long as he was still able to help her out then she didn't think bringing up her concerns was valid. Their relationship was mostly professional, not personal, and if she brought up something like that Stephen might decline to work with them any longer.

    “You feeling alright? Do you think it's time to call Stephen?” Luke had been watching her for most of the evening, and Jess could guess that he was feeling just as anxious as she was. Her due date had been almost a week before, but from both what she'd read and what Stephen had told her due dates weren't set in stone, and she hadn't reached the point where it was an issue of concern yet.

    “I don't think so. It just feels like the baby doesn't like tacos yet. It's not happening on a regular enough basis for me to be worried yet.”

    She wasn't sure if she was just trying to convince herself that everything was fine or if the discomfort she was feeling really wasn't a big deal. For his part, Luke responded with “If you're still feeling like this by tomorrow, we're going to get Stephen here as soon as possible.”

    “That sounds like a good idea.” Just as she spoke, a twinge of pain passed through her lower body.

    Luke's eyes grew larger. “Now that did not look good.”

    Jess said for her part. “Let's just wait a bit longer. Even if it is time, babies aren't born in just a few minutes. I feel a bit like an idiot for running to Stephen every time I get an ache or pain somewhere I'm not used to.”

    It being late at night was another reason she wasn't sure about making the call. It always seemed like Stephen wasn't his usual self if she spoke with him later in the day. He sometimes would promise to get back to her about something, but never did. He also at times didn't remember that they had spoken the night before, which made Jess wonder if she knew what was really going on. There was a small chance that he was just being forgetful, but based on what she knew about him...

    Luke still had no plans to let this slide. “Even if you don't want to call Stephen yet, I'm going to get a hold of him if you start having pains like that again. Times like this make me wish that more of the Avengers had kids. Then there would be someone else who might know what to do.”

    The fact that they were going to be parents when so few people around them had taken that step was something that they'd talked about on numerous occasions. Most of the people that Jess and Luke knew who weren't involved in being heroes had already started to settle down, get married, and have children. There were a handful of Avengers who had kids, like Scott and Julia, but for the most part their lives didn't put them in a place where children were a possibility. She wished that there was someone who could go and give some kind of practical advice for superhuman pregnancy to her. What if it turned out that labor was different for her, and Jess didn't find out until it was much too late? The only person she could really think of who'd had children as a hero was Sue Richards, and Jess both didn't know her all that well and felt too much in awe of her to ask anything.

    (Recently, she'd realized that Wanda Maximoff also knew about having a child when you also had special powers, but talking to her would have been even harder than speaking to Sue. With everything that had happened between her and the Avengers lately, getting a positive reception from Wanda would be impossible. Even if they had known each other prior to all that, the tension would make asking questions too awkward.)

    Just as she was about to tell Luke that there was nothing to be worried about, a second wave passed through her, slightly more intense than the last one had been. Jess tried to keep her expression as neutral as she could, but she knew that it wasn't working all that well.

    “That does it. I'm calling him right now.”

    “Hold on.” Jess still wasn't certain it was time. “Let's wait about fifteen minutes before we do anything. It'll give me some time to get my things together, if this is the moment.”

    Luke did seem to have calmed down a bit, which made her feel relieved. If he'd still seemed on edge then she would have put in a call to Danny and Misty to see if they would have more luck than she was. Jess wondered why he was more panicked than she was. It might have been because she had an idea of what might be coming next, but Luke could only go by what she said and did. “All right. But if you look like you're in too much pain, I'm calling no matter what.”

    His concern for how she was feeling was one of the many things that Jess loved about him. “Like I said, it didn't feel like a big deal. I'm sure I'll be fine.”

    For a few hours, it seemed like she was right. There were no additional pains, and Luke stopped looking in the direction of the phone every few minutes or so. Jess suggested that they go to bed and see about talking to Stephen in the morning.

    But a few hours after she had settled in, she was awoken by a sharp cramping coming from her abdomen. Carefully extracting herself from Luke's arms, Jess headed towards the bathroom. “Is this it?” she wondered. The pain that she was feeling wasn't quite the worst level that she had ever felt, but it was going farther than her previous pains had.

    “Jess? You okay? Should I be making a call soon?” Luke was standing in the doorway, looking so jumpy that she half-expected him to leave and get in touch with Stephen no matter what she said.

    “I don't know,” she admitted. But then another wave of pain went through her body.

    He replied “Well, I do. And I'm getting Stephen, now.”

    “Wait,” was what Jess said. “Let me talk to him instead. That will make it easier to explain what's happening. Second-hand information isn't going to be as good.” She also thought that she would be able to remain calm far easier than Luke, who already was starting to sound slightly hysterical.

    But the first thing that she heard told her that things might not be as simple as she wished for them to be. It wasn't Stephen who answered the phone – it was Wong's voice saying “Hello?”

    “It's Jess. I've been having these pains for most of tonight, and I really need to talk to Stephen. I think the baby might be coming soon.”

    He inhaled sharply. “Oh no. Stephen left earlier today to go handle some important business. I don't know when he'll be back, and he didn't tell me anything about what to do if you went into labor while he was away. We always both just assumed that he'd be there.”

    Jess was starting to panic herself. She also hadn't planned for Stephen not being able to be there when she gave birth, and now was frantically trying to think of who else she could get to help. “There's got to be someone who could get a hold of him.”

    “Where he is right now doesn't get phone reception. But let me think...” Jess hoped that whatever he needed to do wasn't going to take too long, because the pains were coming back. “There is someone else who helped with Wanda when she was pregnant. I don't have her number but I think that Wanda followed up with her after the twins were born a couple of times, so she might have the number. If that doesn't work out then you'll probably just have to go to the hospital and hope for the best from whoever is there. Do you have Wanda's phone number?”

    “We don't know each other. And I don't think she's going to want to talk to me, given Luke's ties to the Avengers.”

    “I can promise you that Wanda is not going to hold that against you. Explain what's happening and what you need, and I am confident that she will help you out.”

    Wong sounded very sure of himself, although Jess wasn't ready to have that level of confidence yet. “Then tell me her number.”

    The number was given, and Wong said “Good luck if this is actually the time. Get in touch with either Stephen or me as soon as you can update us.”

    “I promise I will.”

    Luke asked as soon as the call was over “What happened? Why can't Stephen be here?”

    “Because he had to go off and take care of some important business. Wong said that where he is now he couldn't get a call anyway, so he's not an option now. He suggested that I call Wanda because she might have the number of a doctor who helped out when she was pregnant.”

    “Do you think that she's going to be able to help us, or if she'll even want to? The Avengers and Wanda aren't exactly on the best terms right now.”

    With another wave of pain going through her body, Jess said “There isn't any other option. If Wanda won't help us, then we just have to go and head to the hospital without anyone else. I don't know if they'll be equipped to deal with a superhuman pregnancy, but if that's the only choice we have...”

    And before she could reconsider, she began to dial Wanda's number.

 

* * *

 

    At first Wanda just wanted to go back to sleep when she heard her phone going off. It was so late that she wondered who would want to call her then. Her mind then started to provide some answers. It could be Pietro, because something had happened to either Crystal or Luna, or it could be Wong calling about Stephen being hurt.

    Trying to keep her fatigue from her voice, she went and picked up the phone. “Hello?”

    “Oh, thank God you answered. I know that you don't know me, but this is Jessica Jones. I was told to call you by Wong, because I think I'm going into labor. Ooh.” The last word was punctuated by a hiss of pain.

    She would not have said that she knew either Luke Cage or Jessica Jones prior to the whole mess with the team, but Wanda didn't feel anything negative towards either one of them. They only had become involved in the aftermath of the mansion's destruction, and so hadn't played any significant role in how things had fallen apart for her. She did have one question. “Why did Wong tell you to call me? What's going on with Stephen?”

    Wanda hoped that Wong hadn't suggested her because Stephen was too drunk to be able to help out a woman in labor. As far as she knew his alcohol abuse had not yet led to his being unable to perform his duties, and if things had escalated to that level then it was very bad news.

    “He told me that Stephen had gone off on a mission, and he couldn't get reception where he is now. But we never thought that he wasn't going to be here when I went into labor, and I don't know what to do. Wong told me there was a doctor who helped you out when you were pregnant, but he didn't know their name or their phone number. Please tell me that you can help us.”

    It had been many years since Wanda had even thought of Dr. Marino, but she thought she still might have her name listed in her contacts. She rarely deleted them, so there was a good chance it was still there. “Let me see if I still have her number.”

    Fortunately, she was able to see Dr. Marino's name still there. “Jess? I do have the number, so this is what you need to do. I'm going to give you the information, and when you speak to Dr. Marino tell her that I sent you to her and why you're calling. If she doesn't have any connection to the hospital closest to where you are, then see where the best place for you to go is. Where are you staying right now?” She knew that Luke and Jess had been living in Tony's tower while Luke was an Avenger, but now that the team was in transition they might be staying elsewhere.

    “We're still living with Tony. He says until the mansion is completed then he's just going to have some house guests. I have been making sure I know how long it takes to get to the hospital from here, but if Dr. Marino can't meet me there...”

    “I'm sure that she can work with wherever you go. The only thing that you should be thinking about right now is your child. Go and make the call as soon as you can.” Wanda gave the number to Jess, and said “Good luck.”

    “Thank you.” She sounded so relieved that Wanda was glad she had answered the phone. “I'll keep you updated on how things are going.”

    Once Jess had hung up, Wanda got up instead of lying down and going back to sleep. Her conversation had led her to think about the friendships she had developed with the other Avengers, and how much she missed them. Having met up with Jan to go out with Crystal had been fun, and ever since the whole mess had begun she'd spent quite a bit of time with Bonita, but none of her other friends had been around. She doubted that she was ready to reforge her old relationships, but maybe she could stop by the mansion some day. Just for a little while, as long as Steve wasn't there.

    Wanda still wasn't sure why it was Steve who was the one who she had the hardest time forgiving. It could have been that he was one of the leaders of the team – although Tony and Jan were also among that number and she didn't feel the same way about either of them. The best guess she could make was that it came down to how she had thought about Steve in the past. He was one of the biggest paragons of virtue they had, and his not even trying to see if something else had happened with her besides just going crazy made Steve's image take a major blow with her. And she didn't know what could be done to repair things.

    So until she felt like heading back to bed, Wanda just sat and thought about all that had brought her to this point, and what to do with the people who had been there with her.

 

* * *

 

    When Wong got off the phone with Jess, he wondered how he was going to explain what had happened to Stephen when he returned.

    It would have been a fairly simple matter in the past, or if it was anyone else he was having to give the information to. But with the way things were going for Stephen, he knew that to tell him he had not been present for such an important event was going to send him into another round of self-loathing. And it wouldn't matter how much Wong tried to explain that this was only an unfortunate oversight that didn't mean all that much in the long run, it still ran a high chance of causing him to go and start drinking even more than he usually did.

    Sighing, he tried to think of the point when the level of Stephen's disturbance had become clear to him. There had been a few signs of trouble even back in the early days, when they had just met each other. Stephen always said that until he truly began to study magic that he was an arrogant bastard, but what Wong remembered most about him was how broken he had first seemed. He was dirty, and looked like he hadn't had a good meal for quite some time. While much of the time those who came to study magic weren't cut out for all of the effort that needed to be put forward, Stephen had thrown himself into everything headfirst. No matter how much work was given to him, Stephen always went and took it on without any questions being asked.

    The very first time Wong had met him was when he was sent to give him some food. He'd been told to make sure it was something light, since the new arrival wasn't ready for much more. So all he'd gotten was a small bowl of rice. Stephen didn't look very much like he would later on – he was so run-down that the idea of him achieving greatness felt far-fetched. He turned his head towards Wong and the bowl he carried and said in halting Tibetan “Is that for me?”

    Two things stood out to Wong. First of all was the effort that Stephen had put into speaking the native language. A variety of languages were spoken by the students, and normally one just used whatever native tongue they had to communicate. Putting in a little bit extra to fit in said something about Stephen. The second major thing was the state of his hands. While they were covered in bandages for the most part, Wong could catch a glimpse of some scars behind them. They also were shaking a great deal and he was uncertain of whether it was because of whatever had hurt them or if it had to do with lack of food. His best guess was it was both factors.

    He was tempted to say _No, I just felt like taunting you while I ate my meal,_ as a way of breaking the ice, but Wong wasn't sure if it was the time for humor here. “Yes, this is for you,” he replied in English. “Just so you know for the future, most everyone here speaks their own language. It's fine for most of us, so don't worry about trying too hard.”

    He nodded, and slowly began to eat. Each time Stephen lifted the fork about half of the rice that was there fell back into the bowl, which Wong suspected might have played a role in his lack of eating. “Did someone tell you to feed me?”

    “Yes, they thought it looked like you could use a little something before starting out.”

    “That really wasn't necessary. I'll be fine.” He asked “What's your name?”

    “Wong.”

    He blinked. “Just Wong? Nothing else?”

    “Well, it's my family name, and that's all that really matters.” Typically the standard for most people he knew at home was to use the family name unless the person you were dealing with was very close to you. “I already know that you're called Stephen. We might see each other from time to time.”

    “Maybe.” He wasn't looking at Wong as he spoke. “I'm not the best person to be around, you know.”

    As it turned out, it was only a few hours before they met again. It was the middle of the night when the sound of someone being sick got Wong out from his bed, and he was surprised to see that it was Stephen that he found being ill. “Are you feeling alright?”

    “No,” he murmured. “Should have known this was going to happen. It's been a while...” He trailed off, and Wong didn't ask for more details. Looking back in hindsight, it was clear that he should have guessed something was the matter. Stephen wasn't at the level of starvation that would mean eating such a small amount of food would cause him to become ill. But ignorance could be bliss, at least as far as it went for Wong.

    Even later on seeing Stephen come back from visiting the nearby city with a large amount of alcohol didn't make him think of what the truth was. He knew that at some point Stephen had given away most of the bottles, and that from that point he'd spent a fair number of years without drinking anything at all.

    The moment that he had begun to realize what exactly Stephen's problem was stood out in Wong's mind as if it had been yesterday. He'd been making dinner, although he knew it was likely just going to be for him since Stephen had been out and was unlikely to be back soon. He'd gone to get some of the wine he used for cooking out of one of the cabinets, and was surprised to see it was almost half empty. Confused, Wong tried to recall exactly when he had bought the bottle. Over a month ago there had been a sale at the nearby store, and he'd taken the opportunity to stock up a bit. Thinking that maybe he'd just grabbed the wrong one, he went back to look again.

    The second look did not show anything that he might have overlooked. In fact, one of the other bottles looked to be mostly empty as well. Wong then realized another thing as he was going to shut the door: the bottle of wine that was there wasn't the same as the one he had bought. Therefore, at some point between the purchase and now it had been replaced.

    He'd known who had to have been the one who had replaced the wine, who was responsible for having consumed it. But Wong allowed himself to stay in denial until one day when he was cleaning the study and found a number of empty bottles of alcohol hidden away. He took a step back, and struggled to think of what he should say to Stephen.

    In the end, he just said “I found some things that you forgot to clean up in the study.”

    Maybe if Stephen's reaction had been to ask what those things were, or if he had just shrugged it off Wong might have acted differently in the future. Instead, he looked away and said “I'm so sorry. I'll make certain it never happens again. I shouldn't have made things more difficult for you.”

    It was another one of the things about Stephen that Wong wished he could change. Any time you either did something for him out of the norm or just had something different on your plate he would be very apologetic, and try to keep you from doing more. It didn't matter how many times he said that it wasn't a problem to help him, or that sometimes everyone needed a helping hand. Stephen still seemed to think that even the slightest gestures on his behalf were proof that he was selfish at the core.

    So even though he told himself later on that he should have known better, Wong decided to go forward with a strategy of removal. He started to go looking all over the Sanctum to see if there were any hidden caches of alcohol, and when he did find them he drained the contents of the bottles and subsequently threw the empty ones away. Even though he continued to find bottles each time he looked, it felt like he was making a bit of a difference by doing so. Wong ignored how he was spending more and more of his time obsessing over whether or not Stephen was drinking until two things happened within a fairly close period of time.

    The first of those two things was late one night after Stephen had gone out on a mission. When he would get back was never all that clear, since depending on where he went and what he had to do it could be anywhere from a few hours to over a week. So Wong was just settling into bed when he heard a crash coming from downstairs.

    He wished that it would have been a surprise to find what he did, but the sight of Stephen sprawled out in a heap near the stairs was almost to be expected. He went over to his side, asking “Stephen, are you alright?”

    It was a few moments before he seemed to register the words. “Fine... sorry... sorry...” The smell of his breath would have let Wong know that he had been drinking even if the evidence of the past few months hadn't been there. “It's fine.” He tried to get to his feet, but soon was stumbling again.

    “Let me at least help you get to bed.” He put his arm around Stephen's shoulders and helped him to his feet. Wong almost went and asked what had happened, but he still didn't know if bringing up his drinking was going to be productive or not.

    “I'll make it up to you later, promise,” Stephen mumbled as they made their way up the stairs. “Shouldn't cause you more trouble.”

    “It's not trouble to help you if you need it. That's what I'm here for.”

    Stephen seemed to wilt at those words. “I...” But he did not go and say any more.

    Wong said when they had gotten to Stephen's room “Rest. You'll feel better after getting some sleep.”

    It was hard not to feel like he had failed by seeing his friend in such a state. The efforts he was making into insuring Stephen avoided alcohol were having no effect. But Wong could be stubborn, and it wasn't until a week later when they'd spoken about loneliness that he finally gave up the ghost.

    That Stephen wouldn't be opposed to the idea of their friendship becoming something more was something Wong had suspected for some time now. It wasn't something that they had ever discussed directly, but he knew that Stephen was bisexual and that even while he had been married there still had been times when Stephen and Clea had invited another man to their bedroom. Wong was never certain of what to think about those encounters – on one hand both of them seemed to be pleased with how things went, but there was a part of him that wondered if something like that would cause strain in their marriage later on. It wasn't the kind of thing that you could ask someone about in any event.

    He hadn't been sure if Stephen would react well to his idea, since if things went sour between them it would ruin everything they already had. But after a few brief objections, he'd gone along with things. Wong hadn't been sure of what things were going to be like with Stephen, if he was going to be someone who never was satisfied. In the past he'd made some remarks about how sexually insatiable he was, and Clea had teased him about it as well at times. But Stephen turned out to be an extremely sensitive lover, one who was always focused on what Wong wanted and on making him feel good. And that was the other reason he stopped trying to control how much Stephen was drinking. It was one thing when their relationship was just that of friends, but with the additional dimensions that now were present he realized that all he had been doing was stressing himself out over a problem he could not control. Wong did want Stephen to realize that he had a serious problem and to do something about it, but he himself could not change anything in regards to his friend's drinking.

    During the entire length of their time as lovers, neither Wong nor Stephen ever spoke about what this meant to them. If Wong was honest with himself he would admit that he really never thought about it too much. He was fairly certain that if Stephen had real feelings for him then he would have said something, and as long there were no feelings on the behalf of one party then your own feelings didn't mean all that much. Besides, it wasn't like Stephen wasn't affectionate. He praised Wong frequently for everything he did for him and at times brought him various gifts. So as things went it was pretty good.

    It was a bit funny that one of the few things that Wong wanted to actually change was how giving Stephen was in bed. Yes, it was good to have your lover spend so much time trying to make you happy – but it didn't feel so great if they didn't seem to want you to do the same. Whenever Wong dared to suggest that there might be something more he could do to please Stephen the reaction was always negative. Since discussing the issue seemed to make him so upset Wong once again had to let things slide. It wasn't really healthy to keep on avoiding the issue, but he had no idea how to bring up the issue without causing Stephen to shut down.

    It hurt to see just how much over the last few years that Stephen had slipped. Before, he had seemed to be a reasonably content man, in spite of his alcohol problem. The decline had either been so sudden he hadn't been able to catch it or Stephen had just done a very good job of keeping his pain hidden. There had been little things that caught his eye – the eating less, an increase in the amount of self-depreciation he did, and an overall seeming lack of energy – but all of that hadn't added up to something being very wrong until the day he had seen Stephen sitting at his desk staring into the distance. Wong had never seen so much despair in one person, and he was stunned to have a glimpse of the pain that his closest friend was feeling.

    But trying to get Stephen to talk about the issue in any way was like pulling teeth. He brushed off all questions in regards to his state of mind, and the few times he did admit to having some trouble all that he ended up saying was that he had it coming for how he had behaved in the past. Wong did try to take steps to see if he could do at least something to help Stephen feel better, but the only thing that seemed to work was him having a few drinks in him.

    There were times when he wondered if he had made things worse by having ended their more intimate relationship the way that he did. Since Stephen was not at all forthcoming about what it was that he liked to do in bed, Wong just tried to pay attention to what got a positive response. He could tell that Stephen liked cuddling very much, and that he seemed to crave being touched even when they weren't having sex. So at first he was pleased when Stephen suggested “You know how you've been asking me to tell you more of what I want to do in bed? I've got a couple of things I thought we could try.”

    The words brought a smile to his face. At last Stephen was feeling that he could express some of his desires. “What is it you have in mind?”

    What happened next wasn't at all what Wong thought might happen. Stephen gave him an odd smile and said “I was thinking that you could go and tie me up. Call me some names, rough me up a little bit. You think that would sound like it might be fun?”

    Wong was quiet for a few moments, trying to think of what he could possibly say to this. That sort of thing wasn't really his cup of tea, but he wasn't opposed to trying new things in bed from time to time. Worst case would normally be that you didn't like it much and told your partner so. And if Stephen had looked like this was something he was going to be enjoying then it would have been easy to say yes.

    But the look on his face wasn't one of pleasure or enjoyment. It was one of pain, of expecting that Wong would be more than happy to cause him said pain. It told him that Stephen thought it was perfectly acceptable for him to be treated like that, and that he even might deserve it.

    All he could say was “It might be best if we don't do that.” He hoped that he would be able to further explain why he thought this was the best course of action, that Stephen would ask why Wong was unwilling to do as he asked. Instead he broke down, mumbling apologies as Wong wrapped him in his arms.

    Once Stephen left his grasp he fled their home and didn't return for several days, and once he came back it was no challenge to figure out what he had been doing during that period of time. It also marked the end of how things had been going between them. Wong waited for Stephen to make the first move, but he never said anything about starting up again.

    Maybe things would have turned out better if he had pressed Stephen into continuing with whatever kind of help he had once tried to get. Once he'd started to leave at the same time every week without giving any indication about where it was he was going, Wong had started to hope that he was finally seeking some aid in resolving his troubles. It did sting a little that he didn't feel he could share such a step with him, but things would hopefully get better after a while.

    Unfortunately, that was not how it turned out. After a few weeks of whatever it was Stephen was doing, Wong noticed that all of a sudden he was doing all manner of things for him. Sometimes it was giving him something he wanted, other times it was some type of favor. It certainly was nice to be so well-treated, but Wong couldn't help but feel like something was deeply wrong. Was he wrong about Stephen going and seeking help? Might instead he be doing something that was leaving him feeling so guilty he felt like he had to make it up to Wong in some way? (What this would be wasn't clear to him, and honestly he thought if Stephen really were doing something that was shameful he would have tried to hide the fact he was leaving at all.)

    At last he asked when Stephen brought him dinner one day “This is nice, but what's brought all this on lately?”

    He backed off like he had been slapped. “It's just that you do so much for me, and it's high time that I repaid some of that, don't you think? If I've been making you upset, just tell me and I'll do what I can to make it better.”

    “No, it's just that this feels like it came out of nowhere. It's not a problem if you can't always do all the same things for me that I do for you. Our friendship isn't about how much you can do for me. I feel like I'm doing something wrong when you act like that's how it should be.”

    The words had at least some impact, as Stephen did cease his efforts at making Wong happier. But along with his stopping trying to make his life easier came with an increasing amount of despair. Stephen typically now only ate a small portion of whatever he was given, and although his drinking had always been an issue it now seemed like Stephen was getting drunk every night. And while quantifying something like how one felt was hardly an exact science, he seemed to grow more and more despairing with each day until the time came that he stopped going wherever it was he went.

    From that point onward the whole situation had felt like a stalemate. Stephen clearly wasn't getting any better, but he also didn't seem to be that much worse. The only major aspect that had changed was Wanda becoming involved, and while she clearly was trying to make life better for him Wong hadn't seen any signs of improvement.

    If only there was some type of sign he could see, something that would let him know that he needed to take some kind of immediate action. But as long as things remained the way they were, Wong didn't want to take chances on ruining his friendship with Stephen by forcing him into something he didn't want to do.

    All he could do for now was to wait, and hope that something would shift in the future so he could either work to help Stephen or would have the burden of constantly worrying about him taken off his shoulders.

* * *

 

    After the call she had gotten last night, Wanda wasn't surprised when she received another call early in the morning. “Wanda? It's me, Jess. I wanted to let you know that I had a baby girl around five this morning. Sorry for not getting back to you sooner, but Luke and I were both pretty tired, and then Danny and Misty showed up, and I think you can guess how everything got away from us.”

    “Don't worry about it. The first few hours you have with your child you want to make sure that it's just between you and them.” She added “And since we don't know each other that well, you didn't need to think it was all that important to tell me what happened.”

     “Well, you were the person who was able to get me help when no one else was there. I think I should be obligated to give you an update on how everything turned out.” Jess went on to say “Once I've gotten out of here, do you want to come over? It's okay if you say no.”

    Wanda paused. She thought about all the other Avengers who might be there, and whether or not it would be a good idea to see them. Remembering all of her friends made her think about how much she missed them, and the good times they had had together. “I think that I'd like to know who's going to be there when I do come and visit. There are still a few people I don't really want to speak with now.”

    “Then call me before you come over and I'll tell you who might be there. Thanks again, Wanda.”

    “You're welcome.” But Wanda had no idea when it might be that she would be able to come and visit.

 


	16. Living in Danger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ronan meets with Anna, and his confrontation with Crystal forces her to make a choice.

    Anna had just finished clearing off the table after dinner when she heard the doorbell ring. It came as a surprise to her, since she wasn't expecting anyone to show up. Caroline was planning on coming over at some point during the week to discuss how they were going to handle her actual asylum hearing. “We're going to need to have a narrative that will make sense for what you're claiming in court. Unfortunately there's no way we can tell the true story during your hearing, so we need to work on making sure what we say is as close to the truth as possible.”

    She hated the idea of being untruthful in court, but she also understood that the existence of others in the universe besides humans wasn't known by the vast majority of those living on Earth. If her telling the true story about where Teddy and her came from didn't end up making the judge think she was insane, there would then be the problem of what might happen if he did believe her and somehow the news managed to leak out.

    Could it be one of the Avengers with an urgent message for her? It didn't seem likely, but as the ringing continued she knew that she had to get the door. Whoever was there didn't seem to be leaving any time soon.

    Teddy poked his head out from the top of the stairs. “Who's there, Mommy?”

    “I'm not sure. Stay where you are until I can see who's here, okay?” Anna doubted that they were someone who was seeking to cause them harm, since if they were why would they bother ringing the doorbell? Still, it never hurt to be a little extra careful.

    But the sight of the person who was standing at her door was by far the very last thing she expected to see. “Anna Altman, am I correct?”

    Anna took a step back. She knew who this man was – Ronan the Accuser, of the Kree. She couldn't think of how he knew who she was, or where to find her, or even why he might want to speak to her in the first place. “What do you want from me?” she asked while trying to keep her voice from shaking.

    He gave her a charming smile and said “Nothing bad, I assure you. I just have a proposition for you and couldn't think of a better way of speaking to you. I apologize for having frightened you by showing up so suddenly.”

    She knew that whatever the proposition was it couldn't just be something he wanted to do out of the generosity of his heart. Even with his charming manner and gentle words, Anna still felt suspicious about why he was here. But Ronan didn't seem to be upset with her, and she thought that whatever it was that he wanted from her his ultimate goal wasn't going to be causing her harm. "You may come inside, but our meeting is going to have to be brief. My visitors are severely limited right now, and I have no desire to create any further problems for me and Teddy."

    "Very well. I promise I will take as little of your time as possible." He walked through the door with an aura of confidence that made Anna feel more distrusting of the man.

    "Mommy, who's that?" Teddy had evidently not moved from his spot on the stairs, and was watching the new arrival carefully.

    "My name is Ronan. I used to know your father," he said.

    Ronan may have thought this was a perfectly fine response, but Anna frowned and told Teddy "Can you please go back to your room until Mommy's done talking with our visitor?"

    He did as she said, and once they were truly alone Ronan asked "Why did you feel the need to send the boy away? Do you truly believe that what we will be discussing is so terrible for children to hear?"

   "Not at all. But I see no reason for Teddy to involve himself in adult business. After, you did say that what you wanted to discuss was a proposal for me, didn't you?”

    Anna was proud of herself for having come up with a response like that. Ronan did not say anything to her as a direct answer, but judging by the way his face turned she could guess that he was not pleased with her words. This further gave her the idea that something was not right here. If he had really wanted to speak to her, then why would Teddy being there make a difference?

    He did recover himself enough to then say “I've heard about how you've been denied the ability to return to your people. What a terrible tragedy.”

    The seeming concern that Ronan was expressing to her felt laughable. Anna highly doubted that he really cared about whatever had led her to being made an outcast in what had once been her home. “I can safely say that it's not the best of circumstances, but what did I have remaining at home anyway? My family is all gone and the life that I had made for myself had vanished even before I left my home. So I would doubt that I could call all that happened a tragedy.”

    “Yes, but wouldn't you say that your life has been adversely affected by all of the trouble you and Teddy have gone through?”

    She weighed her answer before speaking. “True enough, but I also hoping that there will be some positive changes in our lives before too long. The past may have been hard, but as long as the future is good then why should I focus so much on how things were in the past?”

    Ronan did not appear to be happy with her words. When he next spoke, Anna could catch the tinge of anger in his tone. “Why would you not want to gain a greater degree of security in your life? Being able to return to your home would grant that to you, correct?”

    She had a feeling that this was leading into something, but when she racked her mind to try and think of what it was going to be nothing came to mind. “Even if I were able to return to my home without fear, how likely would it be that I would still fit in? Don't you think that I've changed a great deal during the years I've spent living here? My old home is no longer where I belong.”

    Evidently this was the right thing to say based on how Ronan then smiled at her. “I understand completely. In fact, that is one of the reasons I have come to you with the proposal I have.”

    Anna was not sure that whatever this proposal was going to mean for her. “Then tell me what it is you have in mind.”

    If before Ronan started to share his idea with her she had trusted he was well-intended, that trust would have vanished as soon as he started to speak. “Yes. First of all I must explain to you about some of the changes that have occurred in my personal life recently. I have recently become engaged to be married to Crystal Amaqualin of the Inhumans. Do you know of her?”

    “I cannot say that I do.” Anna had to wonder why he was going and giving her so many little details. Not getting to the point right away told her that there were things being left unspoken.

    That seemed to surprise him, which further cemented in her mind that there was some ulterior motive behind Ronan's visit. “Are you sure? I know that you have been seen with Wanda Maximoff recently, and I would think that she might have mentioned that name to you.”

    “How is it that you know who has been visiting me? Have you been watching us?” If it wasn't for the fact that she doubted there would be a chance for her if things escalated between them, Anna would have ordered Ronan to leave at once.

    He raised his hand palm facing her and said “I may have made a few inquiries. Just enough so I could understand how everything is going for you here. I am hoping that if you can help me out with my current troubles then I might be able to offer you some help as well.”

   “And what do you want from me?” Anna hoped that her lack of desire to help Ronan out was clear in her voice.

   He sighed. “As I stated before, I am to marry Crystal Amaqualin very soon. This should be a joyous occasion for both of us, but Crystal has gotten cold feet recently. I have reason to believe that she is now living on Earth, and I believe that if I am able to locate and speak with her then she will understand how important it is that she concedes to the necessity of our marriage.”

    “Is there any reason why she might have become so reluctant?”

    He frowned and said in a low voice “Why does that matter to you?”

    That settled it. Anna had no plans on taking up whatever deal she was going to be offered. What Crystal's reasoning behind backing out of the marriage was she still didn't know, but Ronan's demeanor gave her an idea of how things might go between them. She said in as inoffensive a voice as she could muster “Curiosity, nothing more. I can understand how difficult it might be to have someone just run off like that when you were counting on them to be there.” She hoped that the fact she was lying through her teeth wasn't that obvious. If what she was afraid of was true, Anna did not want to make the man sitting in front of her angry.

    It did seem to work, as Ronan just nodded. “Crystal has ties to this world and to the Avengers. I am fearful that she may have been seeing her ex-husband behind my back, and that he may now be sheltering her. And that is where I need your help.”

    As he mentioned Crystal's former marriage, Anna could recall having once seen a picture of her with Pietro Maximoff. They had seemed fairly content from what she could make out, and she had to wonder how things had gone wrong. “I'm afraid that I have no idea where Crystal might be, so I cannot offer you any help.”

    “I wouldn't expect you to know where she would be now. But since you are friends with Wanda, then maybe you could go and ask her a few questions about where my wife might have gone to. That shouldn't be too much trouble for you, correct?”

    Anna stayed silent for a few moments. “And tell me why I might wish to do so?”

    Ronan gave her a big smile and then said “Because I can give you and Teddy something that you will find to be a great boon to you both. A home, a place where you both will belong. I knew his father and what a great man he was, and I would be honored to say that I could provide sanctuary to his son.” He stood up. “While typically one of your people would not be welcomed among the Kree, with the fact that you have been caring for Mar-Vell's son for so long most would make accommodations for you. Just imagine, all of the honors and safety that I can give you, and all you would have to do is to give me a little piece of information.”

    He was so confident that Anna would agree to what he was asking her that she almost started laughing in his face. But it wasn't too hard to imagine Ronan becoming enraged with her if she were to do so. Instead she looked him directly in the eye and said “If you were really serious about providing a home for me and Teddy, then you would have done so without asking any favors from me.”

    “But do you need a place where you can stay or not? What type of standing do you have here? Does anyone in a position of authority even know who you really are?”

    This may have appeared to be a piercing blow to Ronan, but Anna was able to say “For a long time now I've been alone here. But over the last few months, everything has changed. We're going to become citizens of this country as soon as I can get an official court hearing, and then nothing will keep me and Teddy from staying as long as we wish. I have so much here that's now standing before me, and why should I decide to leave the only place my son has ever known on the promises of a stranger?” It was one of the first times that Anna could think of herself as having called Teddy her son, and really meaning it.

    His voice was no longer the same charming one he had used when he had first come to their door. “I can assure you that the son of Mar-Vell would have a grand position of honor in my home.”

    “We will have just as much here on Earth. If I were to go with you I would have to lose touch with all of the friends that I've been able to make since I came here.”

    “Friends? Such as the Avengers, by any chance?”

    If Ronan's voice grew any angrier Anna was planning on trying to see if she could go get her phone and call either Wanda or Bonita asking for some help. “Who my friends are should be no business of yours.” Gathering her courage, she added “And I must tell you that even if I did know where Crystal might be, I wouldn't be telling you anyway. I don't know what happened between the two of you, but I want no part of it.”As a final gesture, she walked to the door and said “Please leave my home now.”

    Ronan did not erupt into anger as she had expected him to do. His reaction was instead to say “This is your last chance. If you do not agree to my offer, then I will be forced to take it back.”

    “Get out.” Anna spoke as firmly as she could, not knowing if her words would make a difference.

    “Very well.” He looked directly into her eyes and said “Because I have such a great respect for Mar-Vell and his son, I will no longer disturb you. The boy clearly thinks of you as being his mother, and I will not subject him to your loss or any harm done to you. But if I am to find out that you have been hiding Crystal from me, then I will do whatever it takes to take her home with me – save your demise. View that as a mercy.”

    The veiled threat did little to make her feel better. Not risking being killed for refusing Ronan may have been a small blessing, but it was one Anna did not care to obtain. “Then I hope that we never again have the chance to meet.”

    As Ronan opened the door, he added “And if you do anything to try and contact those friends of yours, then you also might find the consequences to be quite grim. Keep that in mind.”

    And then he was gone. Anna was relieved on one hand that he did not appear to want to hurt her, and she had a feeling that when he said he was not going to harm her for Teddy's sake that Ronan was being sincere. But how could she deal with the knowledge that Crystal was going to be in sure danger from someone who clearly had no plans to treat her the way one should their spouse? What she most wanted to do – go and tell someone like Wanda or Bonita what had happened here – wasn't the best option now. How had Ronan found out where she was living? If he was monitoring her actions in some way, then either he might be able to see her meeting with her friends or speaking the wrong words to them. That would lead to more trouble than she could handle, and while Anna was worried for the welfare of Crystal she also knew that she needed to think about what was best for Teddy. She was all that he had left in the world. Even if she could be guaranteed that she was going to live through whatever he had in mind for her that still left far too much open for suffering.

    “Time,” she mumbled to herself. “Give yourself some time.” There was always a chance Ronan had no way of keeping track of what she was doing and his words had been a bluff so she would go along with his proposal. Anna didn't think it was a good idea to try anything until she felt comfortable that she wasn't being constantly watched by someone who wasn't an Avenger.

    Calling someone and telling them about what had happened tomorrow clearly wasn't going to be enough time to know if Ronan was really watching their home, so Anna vowed to wait a few days. If she didn't see or hear anything from him, then she could hope that she was safe.

    She was reminded of one of the times that Bonita had come to visit her since they had first met, and when she had shown her the beads that meant so much in her faith and to Bonita herself. And Anna was seized by a sudden feeling of what she needed to do. She had never thought of doing something like this before, but as if she was being moved by a force beyond her control Anna went down to her knees and offered up a plea.

_Please keep Crystal from being discovered by Ronan. And if he does find her, please keep her safe from harm. Please..._

* * *

 

    There had been an unexpected arrival at the mansion today. Crystal had known that Jess was going to be stopping by with baby Danielle, and everyone had stopped working once she was there to go and see her. It was the person who showed up a short period of time after Jess and Luke did that surprised her the most.

    Carol was the first one who got the chance to hold Dani, and while she was starting to ask a question her eyes grew wide. “Look who's here,” she said in a soft voice.

    All heads turned to see Wanda walking slowly over to where everyone was sitting. The only one out of the whole group at the mansion today who had spoken with her since everything had happened was Jan, and maybe Magdalene. It was Vance who chose to break the ice by saying “You're just in time to meet the youngest Avenger.” He waved her over.

    Wanda smiled at him and said “I can guess that Elvin is happy he doesn't have to be the one with that title anymore.”

    “I think that by this point it doesn't matter to him very much. We were joking a while back about how since no one actually seems to remember he even was on the Avengers that it wasn't any fun to remind him that he's the baby of the team. He told me that he's planning on growing a mustache so the idea won't even occur to people if they are to remember him.”

    Dane asked “How is that working out for him?”

    Vance's reply was to say “Yet to see a single hair.”

    A laugh came from Luke. “When I was about Elvin's age I did end up getting just the smallest amount of facial hair, and by the way I acted you'd have thought I was sporting a beard that would have made Santa proud. Finally some of my friends told me how stupid I was being and that was enough to stop the nonsense.”

    Wanda said “Ah, the things we have to look forward to as the parents of two boys. I don't remember Pietro caring all that much about things like that when we were around that age, but it could just be he didn't share things of that nature with others.” Crystal noticed that Wanda wasn't immediately stepping over to where the team had gathered, which made her feel uneasy. Maybe it was a mistake for her to come over without any warning.

    “Oh, that reminds me of something I wanted to talk to you about.” Jan was looking over at her, which could have meant that she really did remember what it was she was going to address or that she was trying to make things easier for Wanda to work her way into. “The next time you're scheduled to be working I've also penciled in Pietro to work. Is that going to be a problem with you?”

    She shook her head. “No. Why would it be an issue?”

    “I just thought that with how things had turned out for you it might be uncomfortable for the two of you to spend too much time together. If it wasn't for the fact that it's been too long since Pietro's been able to come here I wouldn't have had it this way.” Crystal knew that her not being able to come sooner was one of the reasons why she ended up scheduled so much now. She'd asked Tony if anyone had a problem with that, but was told that they were just all glad she could be here with them now.

    Sometimes Crystal herself wondered why she was able to spend time with Pietro without too much tension rising up. She probably exchanged far more words with her ex-husband than with her daughter since coming to Earth, and when they were alone things went smoother than they had with Luna. “Pietro and I have been around each other several times since I came here. We don't even have to talk while we're working, so don't worry.”

    “That's good. I just wanted to make sure there wouldn't be any problems.”

    If Jan had spoken to her in an effort to help Wanda, it had done the trick perfectly. She was now holding Dani and speaking with Carol. The two women still didn't seem to be as close as they had been prior to the manipulations of the Sentry, and she suspected that was going to be something that might never fully heal. But for now it looked like it was enough to just be able to speak to one another.

    Soon enough Dane and her were getting ready to go back to his home. Crystal hadn't wanted to leave until she'd gotten her last bit of work done, so they were the last two remaining. Today they had decided to just go and take Lockjaw with them rather than driving. It was certainly faster, and the dog was more than happy to see new people. He'd come running over to Wanda around ten minutes after she arrived to the site, and was now working on chewing a tree branch that had been cut away after it had been decided that it was on the brink of falling anyway. For the moment, it was a perfect scene of peace.

    And then it all came tumbling down.

    “So we meet again.” The sound of Ronan's voice broke the peace in the worst possible way.

    Crystal's blood ran cold. This was exactly the moment she had been afraid of since fleeing her home. Trying to keep her voice steady, she asked “How did you find me?”

    He laughed. “Why, all I had to do was ask a few questions to your sister. Medusa sends her regards, just so you know. Everyone can't wait for you to have some sense and do your duty to your people.”

    It couldn't be true. Sue had told her that Medusa had only spoken to her the once to try and find where she might be staying. The report of what had been said during that conversation didn't make her think that her sister was going to try all that hard to track her down, but who knew what Ronan might try and tell her? “I don't believe you. You came here on your own. Otherwise you would have come to the mansion right away.”

    “Not if I was first trying to see where you were staying. The Black Knight wouldn't have been my first choice, but who am I to judge your tastes? How long was it before you wound up in his bed, I wonder?”

    Dane had been standing next to her with his hand wrapped around the hilt of his sword. His eyes narrowed and he said “Is that the only reason you could think that I might want to help someone in need?”

    “Do you think that it has anything to do with you? I know Crystal well, and I know exactly how she handles herself with men.” His tone was such that you would think all he said was an established fact instead of Ronan's own opinions.

    “You know nothing about me.” On some level Crystal felt vindicated now that she was seeing what Ronan was really like. It hadn't just been her fears of marriage and what would happen after all was said and done that had made her nervous around him. It had been because she had been able to sense what sort of man he was underneath the charming exterior.

    “I know enough to know that you should have been sent to me at the start instead of letting you linger and reach out to your old lovers. Then I might have gotten you far better in hand by the date of our wedding.”

    “That is never going to happen,” she retorted. Crystal realized that Ronan wasn't making any moves towards her and Dane yet. She suddenly felt glad that he had come for her at the mansion instead of Dane's home. He was looking around as if an opponent was going to come out from the shadows at any moment, and if she had to guess the reason for doing so was that he did not want to attract too much attention. His plan was likely to just grab her and get out as fast as possible, and that gave her hope for their encounter.

    Crystal also noticed that Dane had drawn his sword, which added to the gravity of the whole situation. With the nature of the blade, he would not usually unsheathe it against a living foe. If he was doing so, it was because he felt the consequences of using the sword were lesser than those of not acting.

    For her part, Crystal began to place a wall of earth between Ronan and her. The air around them also began to stir, and she hoped that she was right in thinking that by doing so the sounds of their fight would be more likely to be heard by any Avengers that might still be close by.

    Oddly enough, Ronan still made no move to come closer to her. He looked her directly in the eye and said “I suppose that now would be a good time to tell you the truth about your daughter.”

    The truth? What did he know, or what did he think he knew? “You care nothing for Luna. Why would you be able to tell me anything about her?”

    Ronan smirked. “But I can. You should count yourself as being lucky that you have her. If your sister hadn't stepped in then your request to have a child would have been turned down. Didn't you ever wonder why you weren't even able to speak to anyone about the prospect of having another child? Not that it would have done you any good if you did, with how things turned out between you and your first choice.”

    And as much as Crystal wanted to deny that his words were true, she could recall how shortly after she had been reunited with Pietro how they had briefly spoken about the idea of having a second child. It hadn't ever gone far, but she had gone to talk to Medusa about whether or not they would be permitted to do so if the time was right. Her sister had said “I think that it would be best for you to bring up the issue when the time does turn out to be right, and not any sooner.” But the expression on her face had spoke of something else, something Crystal hadn't wanted to think about.

    (She now wondered how many things there were she had chose not to think on while she lived in Attilan.)

    No longer caring about what would happen to her if she did strike, Crystal forced the ground to come up and strike Ronan. He gave a sharp cry, and Dane then raced forward. She knew that was not going to work out in their favor, and her fears were born out when Dane was smacked to the ground. He got back up quickly, but she doubted that he would be so fortunate a second time. Neither one of them could match Ronan's strength, in spite of all their training, and there wasn't going to be enough time to call any of the other Avengers.

    Out of nowhere, Lockjaw came running to their side. He gave a brief glance to Dane and Crystal, and without warning he jumped on the man with a growl. There was a flash, and both of them vanished.

    A few seconds later the dog was back at their side with his tail wagging. “Good boy!” she exclaimed. “That's just what we needed!” Now turning to Dane, Crystal asked “Are you alright?”

    “A little sore. Nothing major. But that was not a good sign. Do you think Ronan knows where you're staying now, or was he just talking about you being with me just because he saw me and you together?”

    “He has to suspect something.” The sound of her own voice felt unreal to hear. “Based on what I've seen from him in the past he's got a thing about anyone I might have been involved with in the past. With one exception, I'd bet.” Crystal suddenly starting laughing at the idea of Ronan going and talking to Norm about anything. And once she started laughing, she found that she couldn't stop doing so.

    She thought that Dane might go and slap her or something like that, but all he did was stand and wait for her to calm down a bit. “Are you ready to go back yet?”

    “Let me calm down some more,” Crystal responded as she tried to hold back another peal of laughter. After taking several deep breaths, she felt somewhat more like her usual self. Lockjaw walked to her side and began to nuzzle her, which further gave her strength. “It's time now.”

    But as they both were caught up in the rush of travel, Crystal knew she had a great deal to think about.

* * *

 

    Ronan had fully been prepared to take Crystal back with him when he was suddenly knocked down by a tremendous force. The growl he heard told him take it was that stupid dog that he had seen lurking around his wife's residence, and he was going to swat the thing out of his way before moving forward. But there was a flash, and he then found himself back in his home world.

    Jumping to his feet, he watched as the animal vanished before his eyes. There was no need to tell him where it had gone – it was a sure thing that it now was back at Crystal's side. “That was not something that I had foreseen,” he stated to no one.

    He clenched his fists and thought of what would be the best course of action to take. Obviously he needed to go back to get Crystal, but that was going to take time. First of all Ronan decided that he needed to make sure that he had some way of preventing this from happening again. If the dog could be neutralized ahead of time, it would take one problem off his plate.

    His thoughts drifted towards Dane Whitman. He vaguely knew the man through having done research into the Avengers prior to arriving on Earth, but he wasn't completely certain that Crystal would be living with him. The mansion didn't look to be all that habitable, but it did have enough there for someone to stick around until whatever work they were doing was done. (Ronan had no idea what had caused that level of destruction, and didn't particularly care about the answer anyway.) Having someone there to supervise the workers made sense, and if Crystal had come running to the team it would make sense they would opt to house her there. As for the other man, well it wasn't too hard to guess that once his wife had gotten back to Earth she would look for her past lovers to fill up her free time.

    Ronan found he was clenching his fists, and he realized that he needed to keep his anger under control if he wished to be successful the next time he encountered Crystal. He forced his thoughts over to Anna Altman, and wished that she had been willing to deal with him when he'd put his offer before her. But he had been honest when he had said that he was not going to take action against her due to her position in the life of Mar-Vell's son. If she did try to work against him then he would look to non-lethal methods of making her pay, but for now Ronan wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt.

    He began to head off and work on his plan, the first of which was going to be reviewing all of the male members of the Avengers that might be taking Crystal into their bed. Besides Dane, there naturally was Pietro, and he wouldn't have been shocked to find out that Tony also was counted among their number. But without doing some research it was impossible to say for certain.

    He did hope that there weren't going to be too many questions about why he had come back so soon and where his ship had gone. If there was too much disapproval given then Ronan wasn't likely to be given official dispensation to return, even if it was necessary for him to do so to get Crystal back to his side. Not that he would stay put even if he was told to stay. Until he had the woman he wanted by his side, all other considerations were to be pushed aside.

    A second thought came to him. There were others that he knew would be in support of his actions in regards to Crystal, and they might be able to help him make a case for what he wished to do. Ronan smiled as he thought about what he could do to reward his friends for the help they could give him, and imagining the results sent a thrill of pleasure through him

    Now all he needed to do was to set things in motion. He walked off, already rehearsing the speech he would be giving to those who would listen.

* * *

 

    Once back at Dane's, Crystal immediately went and started to put some things together for dinner. She heard Dane say her name, but pretended that she heard nothing. She wanted to forget about what had happened for a little while, and keeping busy was the way to do it. Either he guessed that was what she needed or just knew she didn't want to talk now, because Dane did not enter the kitchen during the entire time Crystal was there.

    Once she'd managed to put something together, she left it to simmer while she went to find Dane. He was sitting in the living room watching TV, and she asked “Do you think he was telling the truth?”

    “About what? Whether or not your sister really sent him here?”

    “I was more wondering about the part about Luna. But that, too.” Crystal couldn't help but to shudder at the thought that Medusa would have gone so far as to send Ronan to retrieve her. Could that be the reason that there hadn't been any effort put forward at finding where she was staying?

    Dane asked “What do you think?”

    “I wish I could say that I thought what he was saying was a lie. But I once tried to see if I could have another child. When I asked Medusa about it...” She let the words trail off, not wanting to touch on such a painful subject again. “Someone who knew the whole story must have told him. Either that or it was something that was talked about behind my back.” Crystal remembered the times she had heard others speaking negatively about Pietro, and how nothing she said or did seemed to help. In fact, her efforts at defending her husband had only appeared to make other Inhumans look down on her even more.

    “Do you think that we should go and talk to the other Avengers about keeping an eye on you? Then we'd at least have backup if Ronan were to come back.”

    She wished that she could say that would make all the difference. “I know that he'll be back as soon as he can. It won't be for some time, but when he does come back he'll be better prepared. And if he really was sent by my people, then I might not even have to wait until he gets back. Anyone could come and try to get me to come back. I doubt that's going to happen, but just telling the team everything isn't all that I need to do to be safe.”

    “So you really think that Medusa sent Ronan to come and get you?” Dane asked quietly.

    “I don't _know._ I mean, she hasn't done anything directly, at least as far as I know, but after what happened back in Attilan I just can't really trust her anymore.” Crystal began to pace around the room.

    “What do you think that you should do?”

    “I'm not sure.” It was a lie. Crystal knew that she was being forced to make a choice: either she gave in and returned to Attilan, or she cemented her status here on Earth. It didn't matter whether or not Medusa really had sent Ronan (although she doubted it was likely), but it was crucial that she had more allies in her camp. Her sister would be certain to let her be if she knew that there was something that held her in place. That was something she had to believe in, because if she did not have that hope there was nothing she could do to remain safe.

    Dane jarred her out of her thoughts by saying “I'm going to call Steve and tell him what happened. That should lead to some extra security being put in at the mansion. He might have ideas for how you could get in touch with the rest of the team in the event Ronan comes back.”

    She didn't want to think about seeing him again, but knew it couldn't be avoided. “I'll just be headed to my room for a little while.”

    Sitting down on the bed, Crystal steeled herself for what she was going to do. If this did not go as she wanted it to, then the best option for her safety was off the table. Picking up her phone, she wished that she'd had time to put in a list of contacts before now. With each number she pressed, she hoped  _Just agree to listen to what I have to say, that's all. We can go from there._

    And when she heard the voice on the other end greet her, Crystal said before she could think “Is there a chance we could meet up tomorrow? There's something I'd like to talk to you about.”

 


End file.
